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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27776908">The Witch and the Colibrì</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/silvercompass/pseuds/silvercompass'>silvercompass</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>EXO (Band), NCT (Band), SHINee, SuperM (Korea Band)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Fluff, M/M, Magical Realism, Romance</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-11-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 08:02:19</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>20,539</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27776908</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/silvercompass/pseuds/silvercompass</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>On a bright October morning, Taeyong leaves his tiny village for the city by the sea to start his apprenticeship at Sunrise Bakery.<br/>The city is beautiful and vibrant, but to Taeyong nothing shines brighter than a man named Baekhyun.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Byun Baekhyun/Lee Taeyong, Kim Jongin | Kai/Lee Taemin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>52</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moonyki/gifts">Moonyki</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The clanking of the train on the rails had lulled Taeyong to sleep, his face pushed against the window while the sun of a bright October morning caressed him warmly. He spent the first hour of his journey just like that, ignoring the coming and going of the other passengers and the whistles of the stationmasters signaling each departure from the stations between the village he had left and the city that he hoped would become his new home. He woke up only when the passenger sitting next to him distractedly hit his knee in his hurry to leave the train.</p><p>Rubbing his eyes, Taeyong settled more comfortably on his seat and massaged his neck, grown numb because of the uncomfortable position he had been sitting in. Checking the pocket watch he carried in his rumpled jacket – a precious gift from his grandfather– he widened his eyes once he realized he had slept for more than one hour, successfully ignoring the chatter of the other passengers and the continuous creaking of the coach. Feeling a bit hungry, he grabbed the backpack he had placed under his seat and got ready to eat the first meal of the day, a sandwich he had prepared himself early that morning before leaving the house.</p><p>Taeyong was surprised to realize that the anxiety that had gripped his stomach the night before had disappeared like magic, leaving behind just the occasional cramp that Taeyong could ignore pretty well. He recalled the words that his mother had whispered in his ear after dinner when she had felt the need to hug him tight one more time: “The biggest step you’ll take tomorrow will be the one out our door. You’ll see, once on the train your anxiety will calm down and you will be able to enjoy the journey. Don’t be discouraged, though, if you will feel it come back. Face it like waves in the sea.”</p><p>Smiling to himself, Taeyong took a bite off the sandwich and kept eating serenely while watching the landscape run beyond the window, thanking, in his heart, the man who had inadvertently woken him up for allowing him to witness the sea coming into view beyond the last hills.</p><p>The city Taeyong was moving into wasn’t too far from his village – the train journey wouldn’t last more than three hours – but it was far enough to feel like a completely new world.</p><p>One last curve and his new home appeared before his eyes that were wide open to catch every single detail. Charming and serene, the city extended on the bay like a sleepy animal, its paws stretched as if to protect the harbor. The sunlight was reflected on the waves in the sea and on the red roofs of the houses that, from the plain, rose along the hill up to the church. Taeyong remembered being there many years ago; it was one of those childhood memories that had faded with time, but that still feebly persisted. Taeyong could still recall the strong scent of the incense and the white robe of the priest, the church choir and the sound of the organ, the prayer book he has shared with his sister.</p><p>When the train began to slow down, Taeyong’s heart had an unforeseen jump. Diverting his gaze from the window, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, his trembling hands locked on his knees.</p><p>When Taeyong opened his eyes, the train was in the station.</p><p> </p><p>“Excuse me, excuse me!”</p><p>Saying that Taeyong wasn’t ready for the crowd that he found once off the train would be a euphemism. He couldn’t understand where all those people had come from nor why there were so many: people going towards the trains, people hurrying up to reach the exit. Taeyong almost lost his sense of direction and risked many times to be sent to the ground together with the heavy luggage he was dragging behind.</p><p>Fed up, he found a family moving towards the exit and he decided to follow them, thinking that the big hat the lady was wearing was so flashy he wouldn’t lose it among the crowd.</p><p>His decision appeared to be good when, at last, he reached the exit and ended up on the plaza before the station. He stopped there, overwhelmed, once again, by the mob, the ruckus of the clanking trams crossing the square, the shouts of the newspaper sellers, the scent of the sea.</p><p>He stood frozen for a few moments, his big eyes lost observing those hectic lives passing him by. Then he shook himself, resolute, and started rummaging in his pockets, letting out a small victory cry when he found what he had been looking for: his cousin Taemin’s address, who had agreed to have Taeyong live with him.</p><p>“From the station, take tram 21 to the foot of the hill, from there continue on foot to…” Taeyong read out loud while walking towards the tram stop, plodding along under the weight of his luggage, his forehead damp with sweat. He had to wait for about ten minutes before his tram arrived, and by then he had started panicking, afraid to be at the wrong stop. He had just decided to ask one of the people waiting with him – a suffered decision, considering how much it cost to him to talk to strangers – when the tram finally appeared in the plaza.</p><p>Taeyong hurried to get up and when the doors opened he barely managed to get on, making his way between the people already packed inside with some effort. He didn’t see much of the city, squeezed between some kids and a man complaining loudly about the uncharacteristically warm weather, but he passed the time observing those who were around him and getting used to familiar words spoken with a new accent that made them, sometimes, almost unrecognizable.</p><p>Getting off the crowded tram was as difficult as getting in; the vehicle spat him at the foot of the hill, as instructed. While the tram continued on its way, Taeyong took a look around and, once spotted the street he needed to take to get to Taemin’s house, he set off, thanking the Heavens that the climb wasn’t that steep yet and that his cousin’s house wasn’t located too close to the top of the hill.</p><p>The neighborhood was very pleasant, with little houses with red roofs and cobblestone roads lined with trees and flower beds. Turning around, Taeyong could spot behind him the bay and a few ships anchored at the harbor; he fell in love with those streets that were so much quieter than those around the train station. It was with a smile on his face that he finally reached the number 56, a modest house with a green front door sided by a big window through which it was possible to glimpse, beyond the curtains, a little kitchen, judging by the wooden table and the sideboard near it.</p><p>Taeyong liked it at once. It was very… Taemin.</p><p>At that point in time, Taeyong hadn’t seen his cousin for a few years, since Taemin had decided to move to the city to follow his dream of becoming a <em>ballerino</em>. After years of sacrifices, the past March he had written Taeyong a short letter announcing that he had been engaged in the <em>corps de ballet</em> of the city theater and that he couldn’t be any happier. Taemin and his achievements had been the push that Taeyong needed to change his own life and follow his dreams. Since he was a kid, Taeyong had always admired Taemin. That admiration had, initially, been tied to his cousin’s older age, someone that Taeyong had perceived as the guardian of secrets, tricks, and ambitions out of Taeyong’s reach. Taemin was taller, he had more friends than Taeyong could ever hope to have, as shy as he was, and he wasn’t scared of <em>anything</em>, apart, maybe, from his mother.</p><p>Taeyong remembered with warm affection the summers spent together at their grandparents’ house, those never-ending days spent chasing each other from one field to another, catching the frogs croaking in the pond, eating bread with jam on the patio while their grandfather smoked the pipe and their grandmother knitted sweaters for the winter. And then… and then Taemin grew up, as kids are wont to do, and the three years that separated them suddenly seemed like an insurmountable obstacle. Taemin didn’t have time to play with Taeyong and then he didn’t have time to spend at their grandparents’ place. The two of them grew distant and when Taemin moved to the city Taeyong feared that he had lost him for good.</p><p>It was for that reason that getting letters from his cousin now and then had surprised and touched Taeyong a lot. The years spent apart disappeared and it felt like nothing had changed from those never-ending summers. Taemin and Taeyong were still Taemin and Taeyong, and the older reaching out to help the younger to make his dreams come true seemed, to both of them, the most natural thing to do.</p><p>Taeyong knocked on the green door and the sound of his knuckles against the wood played as the counter-melody to his heart beating loudly in his chest.</p><p>“Taeyongie!”</p><p>Raising his eyes towards the voice, Taeyong saw his cousin’s head popping out the window in the attic, a beaming smile mellowing his handsome face, his eyes two crescent moons.<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>“Wait, I’m coming down!” His cousin’s head disappeared back inside and just a few moments passed before Taeyong heard the sound of hurried footsteps heading towards the front door.<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>“Taeyong!” The door opened and Taemin launched himself on Taeyong, hugging him tightly and lifting him in his excitement. “I’m so happy to see you! But look at you,” he told Taeyong, observing him from head to toe. “You might be an adult, but you are always as slim as I remembered!” Taemin lightly pinched his cheek and, after dodging Taeyong’s attempt to do the same, grabbed the suitcase that Taeyong had set aside and made way into the house.</p><p>The front door opened on a short hallway: on the left were the stairs to the upper floors, on the right three different doors, one of which led into the kitchen that Taeyong had spied from the window. The house was small and old, but cozy. The dark wood gave the space a warm feeling, and little personal touches, like the colorful flowers on the table at the entrance or the photographs hung on the walls, made everything that much more welcoming.</p><p>After leaving the suitcase at the entrance, Taemin led Taeyong to the kitchen and invited him to sit at the table. “Sorry that I didn’t come to get you at the train station,” he told him, embarrassed, while he busied himself preparing tea. “But I haven’t been home much these past few days and I hadn’t had the time to prepare your room yet.” It was then that Taeyong realized Taemin’s uncharacteristic shabbiness, with his dusty clothes and a black mark on his cheek.</p><p>Would it be rude to say that that sight warmed Taeyong’s heart to the core? Taemin was always so well put together that seeing him even slightly unkempt was truly surprising.</p><p>Smiling, Taeyong told him, “Don’t worry about that. I found your house just fine and it was nice to get a look at the city! It is really pretty.”</p><p>“It is, isn’t it? Ah, I think you will fit in perfectly, Taeyong. The people here are friendly, even a shy kid like you will make new friends in no time.” He lightly pinched Taeyong’s cheek, again, – a habit he had had since they were kids, much to Taeyong’s annoyance - and set down on the table a plate of biscuits, sugar, and milk. “The water will be boiling soon, you don’t mind if I go freshen up a bit in the meantime, right?” At Taeyong’s assent, Taemin sprinted out the kitchen and up the stairs. Soon, the clunking sound of water running through old pipes could be heard.</p><p>While he waited for Taemin to come back, Taeyong took a closer look around the kitchen, loving the light green color of the cabinets and the pattern of the tiles. Curious, he opened the small fridge without too many expectations, knowing just how terrible Taemin was at cooking – from what Taeyong could recall, Taemin’s mother had taught him a few simple recipes before he left home and he apparently survived on those. Just as Taeyong had thought, the fridge was dejectedly empty, some cheese and a single stalk of celery the only things left inside. He turned to check the cabinets, but the kettle started whistling right at that moment so he grabbed it and brought it to the table, waiting for Taemin to come back before making the tea.</p><p>He sat back down at the table and grabbed one of the chocolate biscuits, munching happily on it. He let out a sound of appreciation at just how delicious they were. He would have to ask Taemin where he bought them. Maybe they came from the same bakery that had agreed on taking Taeyong on as an apprentice…</p><p>Just as he was about to grab another biscuit, he heard the jingle of keys and the front door opening with force. A male voice exclaimed, “Taemin! You will never believe this!” and before Taeyong could realize what was happening a man he had never seen before stepped inside the kitchen, almost colliding against the wooden table in his impetuousness. They blinked at each other, unsure of what to do. Taeyong swallowed his biscuit and was about to ask who the man staring owlishly at him was, when the other seemed to realize something and broke out into an enormous smile.</p><p>“I had almost forgotten what day it was! You are Taeminnie’s cousin, right?” he asked sheepishly.</p><p><em>Taeminnie…</em> Just who was that man who spoke of his cousin with such intimacy?</p><p>Taeyong nodded and moved to get up when the sound of quick steps coming down the rickety stairs distracted them both: it was Taemin who was hurrying down and then stopped beside the newcomer. The two exchanged smiles and Taeyong’s confusion grew even more.</p><p>“Who…”</p><p>Taemin turned towards him, and why did Taeyong have the feeling that, for a few seconds, his cousin had forgotten about his presence in the room?</p><p>“Ah, Taeyong, sorry… This is Jongin.”</p><p>A loaded pause.</p><p>“My boyfriend.”</p><p> </p><p>“I’m sorry, I should have told you sooner.”</p><p>They were sitting at the table, Taemin and his boyfriend – Jongin – on one side, Taeyong on the other, sipping their cups of tea. Taemin looked a little bit nervous: when he wasn’t holding his cup his hands were twisting nervously or he was tapping his fingers against the wooden surface until Jongin stopped him by grabbing his hand and holding it between his owns.</p><p>Taeyong saw his cousin take a deep breath and just <em>deflate</em> as if that touch alone had rid him of all his nervous energy. Taemin smiled briefly at Jongin and scooted a little closer to him with his chair, their shoulders brushing.</p><p>“I was afraid that telling you while you were still at the village would have meant that my mother would have found out sooner than I wanted her to.”</p><p>Taeyong widened his eyes in disbelief. “Your mother <em>doesn’t</em> know?”</p><p>Taemin shook his head. “She doesn’t know I have a boyfriend, nor that we have been living together for about six months now.” He took a few sips of his lukewarm tea. “Please, don’t tell her,” he begged.</p><p>“I won’t,” Taeyong said promptly. He was no tattletale. He was actually a little bit in awe at Taemin’s ability to keep <em>anything</em> a secret from his mother. Taeyong’s aunt was known for being a terrible gossiper, always sticking her nose into other people’s business.</p><p>“How long have you been together?” How long have you managed to keep this a secret was what he was really asking.</p><p>“One year, more or less,” Jongin told him. “But we have known each other for a few years.”</p><p>“Three,” Taemin added, and they were once again gazing into each other’s eyes, totally forgetting Taeyong. He coughed.</p><p>“Did you meet at work?” Taeyong asked them. Jongin, too, had the look of a dancer. He was taller than Taemin, but he carried himself with the same grace.</p><p>“Yes. Well, not really. Kind of?” Jongin laughed awkwardly, looking at Taemin to come to his help.</p><p>“Ah, we met in ballet school, that’s what Jonginnie meant. He was already there when I turned up and we hit it off immediately. It took a bit longer for us to get where we are, but we couldn’t be happier,” Taemin explained, while Jongin listened and smiled quietly, his eyes fixed on the tabletop but surely gazing at scenes from their past.</p><p>“Are you in the same dance company now, Jongin?”</p><p>The man nodded. “We were lucky enough to be hired together. We’ll see who will make it to <em>primo ballerino</em> first,” he smirked.</p><p>“That will obviously be me!” Taemin teased him.</p><p>They were really cute together, beautiful even, Taeyong couldn’t help thinking. Different, but complementary. They balanced each other well.</p><p>“I hope you won’t mind my presence here, Taeyong. I know we should have told you before offering you a place here, but…”</p><p>“Please,” Taeyong interrupted him. “I am the one who should be asking you if you are truly okay with me staying here! I don’t want to intrude.” He bit his lips, suddenly worried about having to look for other accommodation. He wouldn’t hold it against them, of course. He understood the need to be alone in your home with your significant other without young cousins in the way.</p><p>Taemin grabbed his hand from the other side of the table. “You are not intruding, Taeyongie. Taking you in was something Jongin and I discussed together and agreed to wholeheartedly. We are happy to have you here.”</p><p>Taeyong looked at the two of them smiling at him, so warm and encouraging, and he felt a little bit like crying. He felt like, maybe, he had found a home away from home. He nodded then, beaming, and said, “Alright. Thank you for your kindness.” And the matter was settled.</p><p> </p><p>“The bathroom on this floor is tiny, but you won’t have to share it with us, so that’s a plus.”</p><p>After their talk, Taemin had led him up the stairs, past the first floor – where the master bedroom was located –, and to the attic-turned-bedroom. The room wasn’t too big, maybe a little smaller than the one Taeyong had back at the village, but it was perfect for him. It had a slanted roof and a lovely window – the same window Taemin had stuck his head out of earlier that afternoon – that looked down the street. The windowsill was large enough for Taeyong to sit on comfortably and he already imagined himself putting a couple of pillows there to make it comfier. It would make the perfect reading nook.</p><p>While Taemin went on describing the work that had been done on the room, Taeyong kept taking in every tiny detail and he couldn’t help but fall in love bit by bit: the bed was crammed between the door and the wall and looked incredibly cozy with a colorful quilt over it; there was a small desk with a reading lamp and a mismatched chair tucked under it; a dresser that had a few scratches on its wooden surface, but they only added to its charm; and, at last, a narrow bookshelf, one of its shelves already filled with books. Eager, Taeyong pulled out one of the volumes, the first one that had caught his attention: it had a lovely blue cover and its title was printed in gold.</p><p>“Andersen’s Fairy Tales,” he spoke under his breath, tracing the writing with his fingers.</p><p>“I knew you would like them.”</p><p>Taemin’s words startled him; Taeyong hadn’t heard him come closer. He let out a little embarrassed laugh and put the book back on its shelf. “You know me well.”</p><p>“Mh,” Taemin hummed. “I had my friend Ten select them personally from his bookshop, you know. I told him some tidbits about you and he instantly knew what you might like. He is scary like that,” he told Taeyong, faux-whispering.</p><p>Taeyong could feel himself blushing. “What did you tell him?” he screeched, worried about some events in his childhood that he would like to keep well-hidden but that he knew Taemin would just <em>love</em> to disclose to anyone willing to listen.</p><p>And so Jongin found them roughhousing on the floor, Taeyong tickling Taemin in all the right spots while cackling, Taemin screaming for mercy and laughing so loudly Jongin had heard him from the kitchen.</p><p>“I wanted to ask you guys what you felt like for dinner, but maybe I should come back later.”</p><p>“Jongin!” Taemin screeched, sounding terribly out of breath. “Save me, my love!”</p><p>Jongin huffed, amused. He shared a knowing look with Taeyong, who had momentarily stopped, sitting on Taemin’s legs, to gauge Jongin’s reaction, and said, “I don’t think I will. Have fun!” He walked back outside, laughing, and leaving a speechless Taemin and an ecstatic Taeyong in his wake.</p><p>“I like him a lot,” Taeyong confessed.</p><p>“I love him so much,” Taemin sighed, lovestruck. “Even when he is being an ASSHOLE!” He yelled that last word, knowing that Jongin would hear him, and resigned himself to his fate.</p><p> </p><p>The two of them were still snickering when they finally emerged from the attic and appeared in the brightly lit kitchen, Jongin looking on amusedly from his place at the table, a newspaper opened in front of him.</p><p>“Are you done punishing my boyfriend?” he asked Taeyong, lifting his chin to accept the small kiss Taemin planted on his mouth on his way to the water pitcher.</p><p>“I deem myself satisfied,” Taeyong answered pompously, before melting into another giggling fit. Taemin had to quickly divert his gaze, lest he sprayed the water he had in his mouth all over the floor. Taeyong’s laughter was <em>that</em> contagious.</p><p>“Okay, okay! Can we eat dinner now? I am famished!”</p><p>They put together a simple dinner from what they could scavenge from the cupboards. Taeyong decided right then and there that he would take care of their meals from that moment on and he told the others so. He didn’t miss their sighs of relief nor the happy little dance Taemin did in his chair.</p><p>“We’ll be out around eight tomorrow morning,” Jongin informed Taeyong. “You can stay in or go take a look around the city. There is a copy of the house keys on the table near the door, don’t forget to take it with you.”</p><p>“Oh! Before I forget,” added Taemin. “There is an old bicycle in the storage closet, you can take it if you want. It’s a bit rusty but it should still work.”</p><p>When Taeyong went to bed that night, tucked snuggly under the covers, he found out that he could see from there a tiny piece of sky beyond the window, framed by chimneys and red roofs. He wished upon the brightest star, closed his eyes, and fell asleep.</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello and thank you for reading the first chapter of this little story ♥<br/>I love SuperM and I love baekyong, that's why I decided to write something full of love and softness, slightly inspired by the movie Kiki's Delivery Service. I also love my friend (and beta ♥) moonyki very much, that's why I want to dedicate this story to her. It's also my first time writing Taekai (there are a lot of first times for me in this story!), so I hope you'll like my version of them ♥</p><p>Let me know your thoughts!</p><p><a href="https://twitter.com/awjonginnie">twitter</a> | <a href="https://curiouscat.qa/awjonginnie">curiouscat</a><br/>Share my <a href="https://twitter.com/awjonginnie/status/1333032459114582023?s=20">promo tweet</a> if you enjoyed!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>For as long as Taeyong could remember he had always dreamed of being a baker. He didn’t know why or when that dream came to be; what he knew with a fair amount of certainty was that one of his earliest memories involved him and his mother baking a cake for his sister’s birthday. He could still remember the sweet taste of the batter he had licked off the spoon and the chocolate he had smeared all over the counter and himself.</p><p>He tried to recreate the joy of those moments in everything he baked.</p><p> </p><p>When Taeyong woke up the next morning, Taemin and Jongin had long gone. He unpacked and then snooped around for a bit, familiarizing himself with the new place.</p><p>The house wasn’t that big so he did a quick job of exploring it from top to bottom – excluding his room and the kitchen, the only rooms that he had not been in yet were the small sitting room, the storage closet, the main bathroom on the second floor and the master bedroom, but he wasn’t going to snoop around in <em>there</em>.</p><p>He quickly grew bored, so he told himself that taking a look around the neighborhood would be nice. He could acquaint himself with it before starting his new job the next day – and didn’t that thought send a nervous but also exhilarating thrill through his body – and bring home enough groceries to last the three of them for a couple of days.</p><p>Resolutely, he marched to the storage closet to retrieve the bicycle Taemin had told him about. Just as his cousin had said, it was a little bit rusty, but in fairly good conditions. It was also inexplicably <em>pink</em>. Had it belonged to the family who owned the house before Taemin? It seemed likely, his cousin had never been too fond of that color.</p><p>Shrugging, Taeyong grabbed the house keys, put on his jacket, and carefully rolled the bicycle down the stairs that separated the front door from the road. At that moment he realized that he had no idea of where the nearest grocery store was located. He also realized he would have to ask strangers for help and that thought was almost enough to have him turn back the way he had come.</p><p>Shaking his head, he held on to the handlebars and took a deep, calming breath.</p><p>“Tiny steps, Taeyong. Let’s start from going down to the main road,” he told himself. “And maybe you should also stop talking to yourself out loud. Yes, that would be great.”</p><p>Hopping on the bicycle, he made his way down the hill and to the main road, enjoying the crispy morning air. From what he could see, there were several stores, all of them overlooking the sea: a hatter, a tailor, a fruit stand. He could hear the shouting of the fishermen on the water edge, selling what remained of the catch of the day. Taeyong decided to wake up extra early one of the following days so he could buy the best fish they had to offer.</p><p>He parked the bicycle against a lamppost and started to explore.</p><p>There weren’t too many people around, maybe because it was still too early for lunch and everyone was still at work. Walking on the sidewalk, Taeyong noticed how differently people dressed compared to what he was used to back in the village. It shouldn’t have surprised him, but he still couldn’t contain a few discrete giggles at the boldest fashion choices. People-watching was one of Taeyong’s favorite activities and he was excited to be able to do it in such a diverse setting.</p><p>Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t realize how far he had walked before a warm, spicy scent enveloped him and he found himself walking past a bakery’s storefront, the sign reading “Sunrise Bakery”.</p><p>Taeyong stopped in his tracks.</p><p>He threw a glance around and, once he saw that no one was paying any particular attention to him, he went back a few steps, stopping near the bakery’s storefront but far enough not to be seen from inside the store.</p><p>The storefront was filled with pastries and cakes so beautiful that eating them would almost be a crime. Shiny frostings, crumbly crusts, colorful jams, rich chocolate: everything was so neatly and expertly arranged to constitute a feast for the eyes. And the scent wafting off the door every time a client passed through was heavenly.</p><p>Taeyong didn’t know for how long he stood there, dazed, before he was startled by someone tapping his shoulder and a voice asking, “Are you okay, man?”</p><p>Jumping in fright, Taeyong turned around, an apology on his lips, when the boy that was standing behind him with a concerned expression on his face was distracted by a female voice inside the shop, yelling, “Mark! Come inside, quick, I need help with the meringues!”</p><p>Taeyong’s words died in his throat.</p><p>He scurried away as quickly as he could, cheeks aflame and an unpleasant knot in his stomach, hoping against all hope that the boy hadn’t seen his face clearly.</p><p>It would just be Taeyong’s luck that the son of the bakery’s owner had spotted him acting like some weirdo the day before he was meant to start working there.</p><p>It was with a sinking feeling in his chest that Taeyong hurried back home, realizing only once he had stepped inside the front door that he had forgotten to do the grocery shopping he had promised the night before.</p><p> </p><p>“Taeyong, are you in there?”</p><p>A soft knock on his bedroom door made Taeyong curl up under his bedcovers even tighter than before. He whined softly, sure that Taemin couldn’t hear him behind the heavy door. He shut his eyes firmly, willing himself to fall asleep and, possibly, to never wake up again.</p><p>After a few heartbeats, he heard muffled voices coming from outside, Jongin’s darker tone mixed with Taemin’s lighter one, a moment of silence, and then the knocking resumed.</p><p>“Taeyong?” Jongin asked tentatively and wasn’t that particularly embarrassing. It was one thing to be seen like that by his cousin but by his cousin’s – hot – boyfriend? That was a new low, even for Taeyong.</p><p>Taeyong popped his head out of the covers, cleared his throat, and asked, “Yes?”</p><p>“Can we come in?”</p><p>Taeyong bit his lips. “I would prefer you not to…”</p><p>“Oh, for Heaven’s sake!” Taemin burst into the room, ignoring Taeyong’s affronted screech and Jongin’s attempt to stop him. “What has gotten into you?” he asked Taeyong, standing in front of his bed with his arms crossed and a frown.</p><p>Taeyong, with the covers up to his chin and hair a bird’s nest, eyed him and then Jongin, bottom lip wobbling more and more. “I fucked up!” he yelled and dove back under the covers, thus missing the concerned look Jongin and Taemin shared.</p><p>“I’ll go make some hot chocolate,” Jongin announced and hurried downstairs, while Taemin sat on Taeyong’s bed, patting what he assumed was his shoulder.</p><p>“Taeyong? Do you want to tell me what happened?”</p><p>Taeyong shook his head. “I want to die,” he announced dramatically, but the effect wasn’t probably the desired one, considering his voice came out all muffled by the covers, and what Taemin heard was just a confused mumbling.</p><p>He heard Taemin sigh and the covers move. He grabbed them more tightly, afraid that Taemin was about to tear them away, but, instead, he felt the covers being lifted, the mattress shift, and Taemin saying, “Scoot over, little monkey.”</p><p>With both of them inside it, the bed felt small and cramped, but Taeyong didn’t mind it that much. He felt safe in the darkness, and warm, and with Taemin there he knew he could pester him for some cuddles.</p><p>“Minmin…”</p><p>“Mh?”</p><p>Taemin had to be really worried if he didn’t react to the childish nickname Taeyong had given him when they were kids.</p><p>“Will you hug me?” he asked piteously.</p><p>Taemin sighed, but circled his arms around his cousin’s small frame, gathering him close. “Satisfied?” he asked against Taeyong’s hair. He felt Taeyong nodding against his shoulder. “Will you tell me what happened?” He scratched behind Taeyong’s ear and felt him shiver. “Preferably before we run out of air and die in here.”</p><p>“That would be a dumb death.”</p><p>They stayed like that for a while, until they heard Jongin’s voice. “Guys?” Jongin had come back and sounded confused. Perhaps he had not expected to find both of them under the covers, considering Taemin was supposed to get Taeyong <em>out</em> of them.</p><p>Taemin suddenly freed them from their prison.</p><p><em>Betrayal!</em> was what Taeyong wanted to shout, but he was momentarily too disoriented to react properly. He squinted in Taemin’s direction, though, hoping that that would be enough to express all his indignation.</p><p>“Air!” was what Taemin yelled, panting dramatically.</p><p>Jongin was standing there with a tray in his hands, three mugs on top of it. “So…” he said. “Do you want some hot chocolate or not?”</p><p>The answer was, of course, a resounding yes.</p><p> </p><p>“Let me get this straight.”</p><p>The three of them were sitting on the bed with Taeyong stuck in the middle – and wow, Jongin was <em>broad</em> – sipping their hot cocoa. It was part of an emergency stash that was to be broken into just for, well, emergencies. Ballet dancers weren’t supposed to indulge in chocolate, Jongin had confided to him. Taeyong felt very touched they decided to use it on him and told him so.</p><p>“You got so upset over some kid seeing you standing in front of the bakery?” By the intonation in Taemin’s voice, Taeyong understood he was about to be mocked or pinched to death, and he didn’t know which one of the two options he preferred. He tried to make Taemin understand how embarrassing the whole ordeal had been.</p><p>“It wasn’t just some kid! He was the owner’s son! The owner of the bakery I’m supposed to start my apprenticeship at!”</p><p>Taemin was staring at him vacantly.</p><p>“What if he thought I was some—some weirdo and he told his mother?! I was just standing there like an idiot <em>drooling</em> over some pastries!” Taeyong wished he could hide his face with his hands but they were occupied holding the mug. “I’ve never been so embarrassed in my <em>life</em>.” He frantically gulped down the last of the cocoa and continued, “It was my Mom who got me the internship, you know that, right?” He turned inquisitively to Taemin, who nodded. “She and the baker have known each other for a couple of years, they are pen pals and they tell each other <em>everything</em>.” He shivered.</p><p>“Pen pals?” Jongin looked adorably confused. His chocolate mustache added to his overall cuteness.</p><p>Taeyong nodded. “Mom found a notice in one of her favorite magazines, someone was looking for a pen pal to exchange recipes with or maybe just to gossip, I don’t know. She and Mrs. Lee have been friends ever since. Do you know what that means?”</p><p>With a deadpan expression, Taemin said, “What?”</p><p>“She could be talking to her right now!”</p><p>“Oh, for fuck’s sake, Taeyong! To tell her what? She has no idea of who you are!”</p><p>“So you admit she saw me, then! Or that her son told her about me!”</p><p>Taemin looked ready to strangle him, but Taeyong couldn’t stop: once his brain got into a downward spiral of misery and anxiety nothing could get him out of it. He just had to ride it out.</p><p>“What’s the worst thing that could happen?”</p><p>Taeyong blinked. “Uh?” he asked intelligently.</p><p>Jongin grabbed the empty mug Taeyong was still holding and placed it on the floor. “What’s the worst thing that could happen?” he repeated. He held Taeyong’s left hand in his own and caressed it lightly. Serious, he said, “It’s not like you can actually die from embarrassment.”</p><p>Taemin spurted cocoa all over the floor, then toppled over, howling with laughter. “You should have seen your face, Taeyong!” he giggled, Jongin laughing alongside him.</p><p>Mouth open in shock, Taeyong sputtered, “You! You are the worst! I can’t believe this!”</p><p>“I was just kidding, Taeyong. And look, you’ve stopped worrying yourself to death, at least for a little bit, right?”</p><p>With a lurch in his chest, Taeyong realized that Jongin was right. He smiled, shyly, and Jongin beamed in response.</p><p>Then Taemin pinched his cheek, <em>hard</em>, and the screaming resumed.</p><p>“Minmin! I hate you!”</p><p>“No, you don’t! I am your favorite cousin!”</p><p>“You are my <em>only</em> cousin!”</p><p>“Guys…” Jongin tried to intervene.</p><p>“Aren’t you lucky!”</p><p>“I would rather have a donkey for a cousin than you!”</p><p>“You little…”</p><p>“GUYS!”</p><p>Jongin was frowning, but when he realized that that wasn’t having much effect on the bickering duo he started pouting, and thus Taeyong assisted, incredulous, to his cousin’s demise.</p><p>“I’m tired, Taeminnie,” Jongin whined. “Can’t we go take a nap?” The way he said <em>nap</em> was way too suggestive.</p><p>Taemin sprung up so quickly he gave Taeyong whiplash. “Yes, let’s go!” He grabbed Jongin’s hand and pulled him up, dragging him towards the door in his badly veiled enthusiasm.</p><p><em>Ugh</em>.</p><p>“Bye, Taeyong! And don’t worry,” Jongin added, just before disappearing over the threshold, “everything will be alright!”</p><p>“Thanks…” Taeyong said, eyeing with disapproval the mugs that had been left behind and the disgusting puddle of hot chocolate spreading over his floor.</p><p>Just before his bedroom’s door closed behind Taemin and Jongin, he heard Jongin ask with amusement, “Minmin?”</p><p>“Don’t say a word!” came Taemin’s annoyed reply.</p><p> </p><p>“Four eggs, 150 g of sugar, 150 g of flour…”</p><p>It was the dawn of Taeyong’s first day of apprenticeship and he was walking down the main road towards the bakery. He had chosen not to take the bicycle, fearing an accident. He was trying to calm his nerves repeating out loud the fundamental recipes of pastry-making, those that he could recite in his sleep.</p><p>The trick didn’t prove very effective.</p><p>Miffed, he grimaced and, after checking his watch, decided that he could take a few minutes to sit quietly in front of the sea to watch the first rays of sunshine appear on the horizon. Maybe that would help with his anxiety.</p><p>There were a few benches on the promenade, all facing the ocean. He sat down, took a deep breath, and filled his lungs with the unique scent of the sea.</p><p>The bay was truly beautiful, even more so in that quiet hour, when the sky was still black but the pinks and the yellows were beginning to filter through. He saw the first fishermen boats sail back home, guided by the lighthouse on the promontory, and wondered just how far they ventured each day, if those men ever feared the sea.</p><p>Seven strikes from the clock tower woke him up from his daydreaming; he stood up and hurried towards the bakery, damning himself and his habit of getting lost in his thoughts. He hated being late, and the thought of being late to his first day of work was particularly haunting. Luckily, the bakery was but a small distance away from where he had sat and he could, in fact, see its sign swinging lightly with the breeze.</p><p>It didn’t take long before Taeyong stopped in front of the shop. He stood still for a few seconds, his last chance to calm himself down, to make order out of the jumbled thoughts in his mind. He didn’t know if his heart was beating so loudly because of the anxiety or the light run. He hoped his hair wasn’t in disarray.</p><p>He was about to knock on the door when, out of nowhere, the air started to smell strongly of ozone and he felt a tingle run up his spine. Alarmed, he span around and his eyes caught sight of the most brilliant thing: a spot of light, not unlike a shooting star, getting closer and closer, flying into the city at breakneck speed from the hills that surrounded it.</p><p>Taeyong stood there, wonderstruck, until the speck of light got bigger and bigger, brighter and brighter, and it was then that he realized: what he was seeing was the shining trail of a witch’s broom.</p><p>Gaping, Taeyong followed the witch’s journey above rooftops and around chimneys until they flew right above the bakery, and for one instant, just before they veered into a side lane, Taeyong swore their eyes met. He wouldn’t be able to describe their features, nor if it was a man or a woman, for they had flown by so quickly, but of one thing he was certain: the witch had most certainly winked at Taeyong.</p><p> </p><p>The existence of witches was not a secret, of course. After all, everyone was bound to meet one or two at some point in their lives.</p><p>It was always a source of great pride for a town or a city to be chosen as a witch’s dwelling and their inhabitants didn’t make a secret of it – Taeyong had heard about places throwing days-long festivals to celebrate the arrival of a new witch.</p><p>Even Taeyong’s tiny home village had been lucky enough to have a witch among its inhabitants, back in the days. Long before Taeyong’s birth, anyway. For that reason, and because Taeyong had never spent a significant amount of time away from home before starting his apprenticeship, he had never actually met a witch. To find out – and to find out like <em>that</em> – that one had chosen his new home as their own didn’t surprise him: the city was beautiful and vibrant and…</p><p>Well. Taeyong didn’t know what a witch usually looked for in a new home, but he was sure they couldn’t possibly <em>not</em> find it in his city.</p><p>He was so transfixed by what he had seen that he didn’t realize that the door behind him had been opened until someone tapped him on the shoulder with a hand dusted in flour, leaving a nice handprint on his pristine shirt.</p><p>“Boy,” a jovial-sounding voice addressed him. “You might want to close that mouth before you catch any flies.”</p><p>Jumping in the air, Taeyong almost tripped over his own feet in his hurry to turn around and greet properly who could only be the renowned Mrs. Lee, one of his mother’s closest friends and pastry chef extraordinaire.</p><p>“Mrs. Lee,” he yelled, wincing once he realized just how loud he had been. “Hello,” he continued at a much lower volume.</p><p>Mrs. Lee looked mildly amused by his antics. Taeyong was <em>mortified</em>.</p><p>“Hello, dear. Come inside, we have a lot to do.”</p><p>And that was Taeyong and Mrs. Lee’s first meeting. Ushering him inside, the chubby lady led him past the shop – which was tinier than Taeyong expected, but with shelves already filled with loaves of bread – through a door behind the cash register, and into the kitchen – which smelled <em>amazing</em> – and handed him a cute apron with the name of the bakery printed on the front.</p><p>Working in front of one of the ovens was a man who Taeyong supposed to be the one in charge of baking bread. Taeyong had chosen to focus on pastry-making, therefore he was able to begin his day at quite a decent time – starting from the next day he would probably need to come to work around six, but thankfully he was used to waking up early.</p><p>“Yukhei, this is Taeyong.”</p><p>The man – who was so tall Taeyong had to raise his head a bit to look him in the eyes – turned to address Taeyong with a beaming smile, his handsome face sweaty and covered in streaks of flour.</p><p>“Hey, man! Nice to meet you!” They shook hands – and wow, he was strong – and then Yukhei went back to overseeing the oven with a focused frown, the bread almost ready to be taken out, judging by the scent.</p><p>“Your mother told me a lot about you,” Mrs. Lee told Taeyong, head in one of the innumerable wooden cabinets that hung on the walls. “I recognized you immediately,” she continued, emerging from the cabinet and bringing a sack of sugar on the huge worktable at the center of the room.</p><p>“Now. She said you are very good at pastry-making.” Taeyong nodded. “But I will need to ascertain that myself.”</p><p>“Oh, of course.” He kept bobbing his head up and down, like one of those funny toys people sometimes put in the rear windows of their cars, and he couldn’t stop, so big was the need to please Mrs. Lee to the best of his capabilities.</p><p>“I have a few rules in my kitchen and I expect them to be always followed: wash your hands often, keep your workstation clean, and don’t give Mark any sweets, not even if he begs, grovels, or tries to bribe you,” she counted with her fingers. “Are we understood?”</p><p>She was terrifying.</p><p>“Yeah, Taeyong,” Yukhei chimed in while taking the last golden loaves of bread out of the oven and into big baskets. “Once, he ate so many sweets we had to take him to the hospital.”</p><p>Gulping, Taeyong answered feebly, “Understood.”</p><p>The sun seemed to rise on Mrs. Lee’s face. She clapped her hands once. “Magnificent! Let’s get to work!”</p><p> </p><p>It took Taeyong only a few minutes of being in the kitchen of Sunrise Bakery to understand what kind of person Mrs. Lee was: kind, but decisive, she ran her shop with the firmness of a general at war and the caring touch of a mother. She worked quickly, her mastery honed by years of practice, but didn’t hesitate to stop and guide Taeyong when she saw him looking a little lost among sugar and spices.</p><p>They had been working for about an hour – Mrs. Lee completing the final touches on a delightfully pink raspberry velvet cake, Taeyong entrusted with whipping egg whites, cutting fruits, melting chocolate, Yukhei busy serving early-rising clients before his shift was over  – when he heard a ruckus coming from behind a door he had barely noticed, hidden as it was between two cupboards.</p><p>Taeyong heard Mrs. Lee mutter something that he didn’t catch before the door opened and a boy peeked out of it.</p><p>“Mom…” he whined. “There’s no more milk for my cereals.”</p><p>Mrs. Lee sighed, stopped working on her cake, and went to the fridge to grab the milk for her son – Mark, Taeyong remembered – who was eyeing Taeyong with open curiosity, while Taeyong himself prayed that the boy wouldn’t remember what had happened the day before – Taeyong had been very happy to notice that Mrs. Lee didn’t appear to know of his little awkward moment in front of her bakery, so he had surmised that her son hadn’t told her about it, much to Taeyong’s relief.</p><p>Relief that he hoped wouldn’t be too short-lived when he saw Mark’s eyes light up as if he had just realized something. Taeyong saw him open his mouth as if in slow-motion and it was with sagging shoulders and a batch of still un-whipped eggs in his bowl that he was preparing himself for the inevitable: to be outed as the odd guy lurking outside the bakery who had run away from confrontation, behavior that didn’t help at all in proving his good intentions.</p><p>Heart thudding heavily in his chest, Taeyong braced himself.</p><p>“Your hair is so cool, man!”</p><p>The whisk fell from Taeyong’s weakened grip into the bowl, splashing egg whites on his clean apron.</p><p>“Be careful.” Mrs. Lee side-eyed him before reaching her son and pushing the milk carton in his hands. “Go,” she scolded him. “If your teacher tells me you were late for school again…” She didn’t even need to finish her sentence for Mark to squeak and scuttle away, a faint “Bye, Taeyong!” left in his wake.</p><p>“Ah, that boy!” Mrs. Lee shook her head, smiling fondly. She resumed working on her cake, placing small sugar flowers on its surface. “He was so excited when I told him you would come working here.” At Taeyong’s inquisitive sound, she continued, “He is a sweet boy, but, between you and me, he doesn’t have a lot of friends apart from Yukhei and Baekhyun, but Baekhyun is his piano teacher, so I really don’t think he should count.”</p><p>“Oh…”</p><p>“Keep whipping those whites.” Taeyong rushed to obey. “He probably wouldn’t like me telling you this, but you won’t tell him I told you, right?” Taeyong shook his head. “Well, after I first mentioned to him the possibility that my good friend’s son would move to the city to work here he kept pestering me to know when you would come. How old is he, mom? What’s his name? Do you think he likes playing board games?”</p><p>“I love playing board games…”</p><p>She didn’t appear to have heard him, for she kept talking about her son, oblivious to the small, sweet smile on Taeyong’s lips and the red that had lightly tinted his cheeks.</p><p>How could Taeyong’s heart not melt thinking of a lonely boy who had awaited his arrival with such excitement? He couldn’t help but recognize himself in Mark, from the loneliness down to the love for pastimes others would think boring.</p><p>Mrs. Lee was still talking, the cake decoration almost complete, when Taeyong interrupted her. “Maybe…Maybe we could spend time together, Mark and I,” he suggested. “When we are not busy with work or school, of course.” Such a blatant display of his feelings didn’t come easy to Taeyong, especially because he was talking to someone he didn’t know well, especially because that someone was his boss, but he didn’t want to disappoint that boy who had complimented his boring brown hair just to find a way to break the ice.</p><p>He knew what it felt like hoping for something that would change the empty routine of everyday life, and if he could be part of that change for Mark he wanted to try.</p><p>The warm smile Mrs. Lee gave him told him he said the right thing.</p><p> </p><p>After that, the day passed by quickly in a cloud of cinnamon, powdered sugar, and flour. He and Mrs. Lee worked in the kitchen for a couple of hours before Yukhei was done with his shift preparing fresh cakes and cookies, and then when it was time for Yukhei to leave, they relieved each other behind the counter, serving customers.</p><p>Mrs. Lee watched Taeyong like a friendly hawk, ready to step in had something gone wrong. Thankfully, despite Taeyong’s shyness, everything went smoothly and, in fact, he discovered he quite enjoyed working at the register. Thinking about it while walking back home in the afternoon – and oh, how he regretted not taking the bicycle that morning – Taeyong thought that it might be because the interactions he had with customers were straightforward: they wanted something from him that he knew he could provide. No awkwardness, no mixed signals, no need to come up with something to say when his throat felt stuffed with sand.</p><p>Smiling, he thought to himself that it had, indeed, been a good day. The only thing he regretted was not having been able to talk to Mark, to introduce himself properly, before having to leave. The poor boy was still at school, Mrs. Lee had told Taeyong, getting extra math lessons to try and get his grades up.</p><p>Taeyong hoped they could talk the next day. The thought both excited and worried him. What if Taeyong fell short of the image Mark had spun from his mother’s tales?</p><p>Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t realize he had reached Taemin and Jongin’s house until he had walked past it. Going back a few steps, he stood in front of the green door, the number 56 and the brass pommel reflecting the light of the street lamp.</p><p>When he saw the light spilling from the kitchen’s window to the road, he felt warm. Knowing that he had a home – and not just a house – to go back to after a day of work meant so much to him. Before coming to the city he had been so scared he would feel more lonely than he had ever felt at the village without his family, without his favorite tree in the courtyard. He could have never expected – though he did hope for it, in a way – to find a home away from home, a place where his heart could rest, safe.</p><p>He found Taemin and Jongin hugging in the kitchen, swaying lightly to the music coming from the radio on top of the fridge.</p><p>He cleared his throat.</p><p>Taemin raised his head from Jongin’s shoulder but didn’t let go of him.</p><p>“Taeyong, how did it go?”</p><p>Taemin and Jongin were looking at him with bated breath. “It went well.” Taeyong smiled. “It went amazing,” he added. After that, the kitchen was filled with screams of joy and Taeyong found himself hugged between the two other men. Taemin pressed a kiss on Taeyong’s head and whispered, “Congratulations,” in his ear. Taeyong teared up a bit.</p><p>They celebrated together with a nice dinner – Taeyong was elated to discover that Taemin and Jongin had found the grocery list he had written the day before and decided to buy the groceries themselves – and when it was time for bed Taeyong found himself looking at the stars from his window in the attic, the sky so clear they seemed close enough to catch. Just before closing the window, he could swear he saw one of those stars speeding away from the city and to the black hills beyond.</p><p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Did you like our first glimpse of magic? :)<br/>Let me know your thoughts!<br/>Stay safe ♡</p><p><a href="https://twitter.com/awjonginnie">twitter</a> | <a href="https://curiouscat.qa/awjonginnie">curiouscat</a><br/>Share my <a href="https://twitter.com/awjonginnie/status/1333032459114582023?s=20">promo tweet</a> if you enjoyed!</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Taeyong, we need more tarts!”</p>
<p>“Coming!”</p>
<p>Wiping his hands on his apron, Taeyong hurried towards the fridge, took out a tray of fruit tarts they had prepared earlier that morning, and dashed out of the kitchen, meeting Mrs. Lee halfway. She grabbed the tray from his hands and started to fill a box for one of their clients, a middle-aged lady who came by the shop every three days on the dot, always asking for pastries she could serve her friends during tea time.</p>
<p>When Taeyong went back to the kitchen to finish cleaning his workstation he found Mark, still in his school uniform, rummaging in one of the drawers with a soda bottle in one hand.</p>
<p>“Mark?”</p>
<p>“Taeyong! Hi!” Mark said, eyes still on the drawer. Frowning, he sighed and turned towards Taeyong. “Do you happen to know where the bottle opener is?” he pleaded.</p>
<p>Nodding, Taeyong crossed the room and opened the drawer under the one Mark had been searching in. “Here,” he said, offering him the opener.</p>
<p>“Thanks, man.” Mark did a quick job of opening the bottle, the cap falling off and to the ground with a pleasant tinkling noise. He downed half the bottle in a few, quick gulps, and then let out a satisfied belch.</p>
<p>Scrunching his nose, Taeyong warned him, “There is a lot of sugar in that too, you know?”</p>
<p>Mark nodded, a mischievous glint in his dark eyes. “Yeah, but Mom said no sweets.” He took another sip. “She didn’t say anything about soft drinks.”</p>
<p>Taeyong let out a loud cackle, regretting it soon after. Embarrassed, he eyed the kitchen’s door, hoping that Mrs. Lee had not heard him.</p>
<p>Mark’s giggles filled up the kitchen. “Do you want some?” he asked Taeyong, who shook his head.</p>
<p>He was feeling quite shy, all of a sudden. In the past few days since he had started working at the bakery, Taeyong had seen Mark quite a few times, especially in the mornings when he came by the shop to say goodbye to his mother before heading to school. They hadn’t had the time to talk yet, though, and that was because Mark always came back home when Taeyong was already done for the day.</p>
<p>It had come as a surprise to Taeyong, then, to find Mark in the kitchen when it was barely midday. School had probably let out early, which had had to be good news for Mark, but not for Taeyong because he hadn’t had the time to prepare himself to interact with Mark, and a Taeyong unprepared for any kind of social interaction was an awfully awkward one.</p>
<p>“How old are you?”</p>
<p>Thankfully, Mark seemed to always be willing to break the ice between the two of them.</p>
<p>“I’m twenty.”</p>
<p>“Cool! I’m seventeen!”</p>
<p>Mark, Taeyong had to admit, was terribly endearing in his school-boy uniform and threadbare shoes, sporting the most contagious grin he had ever seen. He had a way to put people at ease, Taeyong thought, exuding such a positive energy there was no way Taeyong wouldn’t reciprocate that smile.</p>
<p>Taeyong was about to open his mouth to say something – anything – that could convey how much he appreciated Mark trying to talk to him, when Mrs. Lee entered the room, smiling widely.</p>
<p>“Taeyong, people loved the scones you prepared earlier, we are already out. You’ll have to prepare more tomorrow!”</p>
<p>Taeyong was hit by a rush of joy so strong he felt warm all over. “Thank you, Mrs. Lee!” he gushed, deliriously happy.</p>
<p>Mrs. Lee smiled and patted his shoulder. She glanced at her son – who had conveniently hidden all evidence of his soda consumption – and asked him, “Why don’t you take Taeyong out for lunch? The day is beautiful, you could take him to the kiosk by the beach, show him the area.”</p>
<p>Mark lit up. “Yes! Taeyong, please, let’s do that!”</p>
<p>Taeyong was torn. “But the shop…”</p>
<p>“Nonsense,” Mrs. Lee said. “The rush hour is over already, I can manage by myself or I wouldn’t have suggested it.”</p>
<p>“Please, Taeyong,” Mark pleaded.</p>
<p>Biting his lips, Taeyong’s nodded and Mark let out a joyful yell. “It’s gonna be amazing! The kiosk does the <em>best</em> fried shrimp in the entire city and there is a music store nearby that you absolutely need to check out…”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>That was how Taeyong found himself pedaling along the seafront with Mark sitting behind him, his hands holding on tightly to Taeyong’s hips while he chattered excitedly in Taeyong’s ears about anything that came to his mind, from the fluffy dog they came across to the best ice-cream parlor in the city, the one he and Yukhei had claimed as their favorite spot after testing all the ice-cream parlors the city had to offer.</p>
<p>With the mild sun shining brightly on his face, the sea breeze in his hair, and a new friend clinging to his back, Taeyong was coursed through by shivers of pure, undiluted joy, so great and unexpected he feared it might overwhelm him. He held on more tightly to the handlebars and pedaled faster and faster, Mark yelling and laughing in his ears, and it almost felt like flying.</p>
<p>When they reached the beach, they left the bicycle against the low wall that divided the road from the sand, and continued on foot along the boardwalk that led to the kiosk. A few people had had the same idea to have lunch outdoor and the beach was dotted here and there by couples or groups of friends enjoying their break in front of the sea, lulled by the calls of the seagulls and the sound of the waves crashing on the shore.</p>
<p>After grabbing their lunch – two plates full of fried fish, shrimps, and mussels – Mark convinced Taeyong to sit down on the beach, uncaring of the sand getting everywhere; they dug in and, for a while, no more words were exchanged between them, their mouths occupied eating what –  Taeyong had to admit –  was the best fish he had ever tasted.</p>
<p>“Is it always like this here?”</p>
<p>Once done with his food, Taeyong hadn’t been able to help himself from asking that question, something that he had wanted to do since he had arrived in a city so breathtaking that it seemed born from the brush of a painter.</p>
<p>“Like what?” Mark asked.</p>
<p>Taeyong didn’t answer, not at first, eyes full of the golden color of the sand.</p>
<p>“Taeyong?” Mark sounded hesitant, unsure of what his new friend meant.</p>
<p>“Sorry,” Taeyong said, waking up from his daydreaming. “I’ve never felt what I’m feeling now in any other place in the world. I was wondering if it’s the city’s influence.” He spoke of the city as if it had a soul and a will, but he didn’t realize it, not yet.</p>
<p>Taeyong laughed, self-conscious. “I’m sorry, you didn’t bring me here to listen to me babbling about such nonsense.”</p>
<p>But Mark didn’t seem bothered by his words; on the contrary, he was regarding Taeyong with attentiveness, and Taeyong would have lied saying that that didn’t surprise him.</p>
<p>“I brought you here to get to know you better,” Mark shrugged. “Whatever you want to talk about is fine with me.”</p>
<p>“Oh.” Taeyong felt small, and then his heart got bigger and bigger, and all he had felt in the few days spent in the city spewed out of his mouth like water out of a freshly dug well. “I feel like—I feel like I don’t have enough space inside my chest to hold on to all these feelings.” He grabbed the bottom of his shirt in his hands, twisting the fabric around his fingers. “I thought I would feel lonely here, and that I would be missing home, and I do! Believe me, I do miss my family, but…” He shook his head, slowly, to recollect his thoughts. “I am happy here, I think. More than I could ever have imagined. And I don’t know what to do with myself.” He turned to look at Mark, willing him to understand.</p>
<p>And understand he did. “You thought it would be harder for you to live here, but you feel happy and that scares you. Is that it?”</p>
<p>Taeyong nodded, surprised.</p>
<p>Mark pondered for a while, then nodded, decisive. “There is only one thing to do when you are scared.” He hit the palm of his hand with his fist.</p>
<p>Taeyong was listening very carefully. He watched, confused, as Mark started to untie his shoes. He took them off together with his white socks, rolled up his pants, and got up.</p>
<p>“What… what should I do?” Taeyong asked, squinting up at him because the sun was burning his eyes.</p>
<p>Mark grabbed his hands and swiftly pulled him up, ignoring Taeyong’s surprised squeak. “The same thing I do when I’m scared! I distract myself from thinking about it!”</p>
<p>He broke into a short run, dragging a reluctant Taeyong behind him. “Come, come!” he laughed, jumping into the shallow water.</p>
<p>“Wait,” Taeyong screeched. “Let me get my shoes off!”</p>
<p>They played in the water like little kids, laughing and yelling and generally making a nuisance of themselves to those people who had come to the beach for some peace and quiet. Mark tried several times to get Taeyong drenched by jumping unexpectedly on his back, but Taeyong managed to maintain his balance every time. Only when the clock tower struck twice they realized how late it was, and scrambled back on the beach, hurrying to put their socks and shoes back on – and oh, how gross the feeling of wet feet in dry cotton was – and to pedal back to the shop.</p>
<p>A tiny stab of anxiety made itself known at the thought of being late for his last hour or so at the shop, but Taeyong felt as if the sunshine that had been shining at the beach had been stored inside his heart, and that that warmth, mixed with the feeling of Mark draped on his back, was enough to keep any fear at bay.</p>
<p>When they got back at the bakery, Mrs. Lee greeted them with a smile, then a light scold when she noticed how wet the hems of their pants were. She didn’t say anything about Taeyong being late.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After many days of mild weather, fall decided to make its grand entrance almost half-way through October, bringing with it cold wind, rain, and people’s longing for specific types of sweets. Plums, hazelnuts, golden apples, pumpkins, ginger, and figs started to fill the bakery’s pantry waiting to be turned into little works of confectionery art.</p>
<p>Taeyong had always loved fall, so much so that he would go as far as to say that it was probably his favorite season. There was something almost magical about it: the leaves changing color, all the delicious food he could cook with the harvest of the season, the cozy scarves and sweaters.</p>
<p>And, of course, Halloween. What was there not to love about fall?!</p>
<p>That was why his sudden cheerfulness at the first cold could not be hidden, not to Taemin and Jongin, who judged him over their coffees every morning looking quite miserable in their fuzzy pajamas, nor to Mrs. Lee and Yukhei, who mostly seemed amused by it.</p>
<p>Taeyong loved fall because he firmly believed it brought with it some of the best things in life.</p>
<p>He didn’t know it yet, but that sentiment was about to be proven true by the jingling of the little bell above the bakery’s door announcing the arrival of a new client. </p>
<p>With Mrs. Lee in the back sorting through their ingredients and Yukhei gone for the day, Taeyong was the only one at the counter, doodling on a notepad they kept beside the register to jot down the orders that, sometimes, clients gave through the phone.</p>
<p>Immersed as he was in his rendition of his cousin Taemin in his favorite bunny slippers, he didn’t react immediately to the sound of the door opening and the jingle of the bell above it. It was only when he heard someone approaching the counter and a smooth voice say, “Hello,” that he raised his head, startled.</p>
<p>“Welcome!” he greeted. “How may I help you?”</p>
<p>Both he and the man in front of him watched the pen he had been using roll down the counter and to the floor, but when Taeyong didn’t move a muscle to pick it up, the man raised his eyebrow, amused, and pretended like he hadn’t seen anything, for which Taeyong was very grateful.</p>
<p>“I am looking for Mark,” the man said. “I rang the doorbell, but no one seems to be home.”</p>
<p>Mark and Mrs. Lee lived above the shop and had a separate entrance to their apartment right beside the bakery’s. The apartment could also be accessed from inside the shop, through a door in the kitchen that Mark liked to use to approach Taeyong undetected and scare him to death.</p>
<p>“Oh, I haven’t seen him yet,” Taeyong replied, contrite. “If you want to leave him a message I can—”</p>
<p>“You don’t remember me, do you?” the man interrupted, the amused glint in his eyes clashing with the pout on his lips.</p>
<p>Taeyong froze, taken aback. He didn’t remember ever meeting the man before. It seemed most unlikely, considering his non-existent social life. Nonetheless, he observed the man more carefully, hoping to trigger his memory: as tall as Taeyong, the other guy had wide shoulders, a mop of dark-red hair, round, wire-rimmed glasses on his button nose, and colorful tattoos up and down his neck.</p>
<p>The more Taeyong looked at him, the more he could feel himself flushing, and not just from embarrassment.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry,” he babbled, fidgeting. “But I don’t.”</p>
<p>The man’s gaze softened, and his lips stretched into a smile. “It’s alright,” he told Taeyong. “I’m sure it’ll come up to you.”</p>
<p>He came to the counter and leaned on it, so close that Taeyong could notice the tiny mole near his upper lip. “I’m Baekhyun.”</p>
<p>“Taeyong,” he stuttered, flustered.</p>
<p>“Mh, it suits you,” Baekhyun murmured. He had not once diverted his eyes from Taeyong’s own.</p>
<p>That was how Mrs. Lee found them, one leaning towards the other, Taeyong’s cheeks as red as ripe tomatoes, Baekhyun’s smirk unfairly attractive.</p>
<p>“Baekhyun? What are you doing here?” she asked, clearly happy to see him judging by her smile.</p>
<p>“Mrs. Lee!” he greeted her. Beaming, Baekhyun came around the counter to gather her in a hug, and that gave Taeyong just enough time to try and compose himself. Blinking furiously, he patted his cheeks, cringing at how warm they felt under his palms.</p>
<p>“I was looking for Mark. We had a lesson today, but no one is home.”</p>
<p>“Ah, that boy! He must have forgotten!” She shook her head, defeated. “I swear he would forget his head if it wasn’t attached to his neck!”</p>
<p>Seeing as the other two weren’t paying attention to him, Taeyong decided that that was his only chance to slink away.</p>
<p>In his haste, he missed Baekhyun’s eyes following him until he was out of sight.</p>
<p>Once in the kitchen, he fanned himself with his apron, willing his body to <em>calm itself down</em>. “What is wrong with me?” he whined, frustrated. To get his mind off the awkward encounter, he grabbed the first rag he put his eyes on and started to wipe the worktable furiously, resolutely trying not to think about the shape of Baekhyun’s lips. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Taeyong didn’t think of himself as someone easily annoyed or frustrated. He had always been a patient person – his sister and Taemin could testify to that; being the younger in the family meant he had always been the favorite target for all kinds of pranks – but he had to admit to himself that life was recently putting him to the test.</p>
<p>And by life he meant Baekhyun.</p>
<p>Since the first day he had turned up at the shop looking for Mark, Baekhyun had apparently decided that pestering Taeyong was an activity worth of his time. Every time he had a scheduled piano lesson with Mark, he came by the bakery first, much to Taeyong’s embarrassment and Mrs. Lee’s puzzlement.</p>
<p>“Have you remembered me yet?” he kept asking him cheekily, enjoying the sight of a flustered, fumbling Taeyong. And the worst thing was that Taeyong wasn’t able to ignore his questions. Oh, he had tried after the first couple of times, but Baekhyun had refused to leave the bakery without an answer, dawdling around and bothering Mrs. Lee in the kitchen – although, by the sound of her loud laughter, she didn’t really mind.</p>
<p>“I have not,” Taeyong pouted, busy arranging pretty pastries on a display. He refused to look up, knowing what he would find: Baekhyun smiling amusedly at him, his shiny eyes taking Taeyong in. He blushed just thinking about it.</p>
<p>Loudly closing the display, he turned around to go back to the kitchen where he planned to keep working on a birthday cake they had been commissioned and that Mrs. Lee had trusted him with, when Baekhyun’s voice, unusually soft and tentative, stopped him in his tracks.</p>
<p>“Taeyong.” </p>
<p>“Yes?”</p>
<p>Looking at Baekhyun, Taeyong was surprised to see him looking uncharacteristically shy. He seemed to have made himself smaller, with his hunched shoulders and hands in the pockets of his jeans.</p>
<p>“You would tell me if you didn’t like having me around, right?”</p>
<p>Inhaling sharply, Taeyong was at loss for words.</p>
<p>“I like to joke around with you because you are so cute when you get pouty, but you only need to tell me to fuck off for me to stop.”</p>
<p>Blushing furiously once again, Taeyong took a moment to think about what Baekhyun had said. Was he really that bothered by Baekhyun’s presence? The answer was no. If Taeyong had to be completely honest – at least with himself – Baekhyun’s unexpected interest in him was quite flattering. If Taeyong had appeared curt with Baekhyun that was because he had no idea how to respond to such interest. He was so confused by the nature of such attentions that his first response had been that of closing himself off, appearing more bothered by them than he truly felt. But faced by Baekhyun’s sudden shyness and his attentiveness towards Taeyong’s feelings, he could feel himself letting go of the defenses he had pulled up to greet with a sincere smile someone he had never expected to be so pulled to.</p>
<p>So, with his heart in his throat, he spoke softly: “I—I don’t mind you being here.” He decided then and there to be completely honest, and thus he added bashfully, “I like your company.”</p>
<p>Baekhyun’s happy laughter filled the room and sank into Taeyong’s soul as sweetly as sticky caramel. They smiled dumbly at each other until they heard a crashing sound coming from the kitchen and Mrs. Lee’s loud cursing. With an apologetic smile, Taeyong hurried in the back, Baekhyun’s cute face as he waved goodbye imprinted on his mind.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Sunday was Taeyong’s favorite day of the week. With the bakery being closed in the afternoon and Taemin and Jongin home from work, they were free to spend those hours together at home or around the neighborhood, the couple eager to show Taeyong all the best spots in the area.</p>
<p>The bakery was closed on Mondays, too, but those days weren’t as exciting: Taemin and Jongin went to work and Taeyong was left alone moping around the house. He usually ended up getting some groceries and cooking all day or, sometimes, Yukhei invited him out to get some coffee, for which Taeyong was beyond grateful. Yukhei was funny and down to earth, and Taeyong had instantly found himself comfortable in his presence. He kept weird hours – waking up at 2 AM every working day meant waking up at that same hour even on his free day, unfortunately – so they were able to hang out just in the mornings, but Taeyong didn’t mind.</p>
<p>On that particular Sunday afternoon, the sky was gray and promised rain, so Taemin, Jongin, and Taeyong decided to stay home, each of them occupying their time in different ways: Jongin was reading a book curled up on the couch, Taemin was sitting at the kitchen table playing solitaire, and Taeyong was getting started on their dinner, chatting with Taemin in the meantime.</p>
<p>When Jongin shuffled to the kitchen to get himself something to drink, Taeyong watched Taemin perk up in his seat and draw Jongin’s attention with a cute, chirping sound. He saw Jongin smile softly and come to Taemin’s side, cup Taemin’s cheeks, and bend down to sweetly kiss his lips, Taemin letting out an enamored sigh when they broke apart.</p>
<p>With rosy cheeks and a satisfied smile, Taemin went back to his deck of cards, unaware of Taeyong’s pensive gaze. Once Jongin had gone back to his book, Taeyong decided to speak.</p>
<p>“How do you know if someone is flirting with you?” he asked Taemin nonchalantly, head bent over the bowl of beans he was busy shelling for dinner.</p>
<p>Taemin froze. Blinking, he opened and closed his mouth in a parody of a fish out of water before he grasped what Taeyong had asked him and screeched, “Who is flirting with my baby cousin?!”</p>
<p>A thud from the living room that sounded suspiciously like a book falling on the carpeted floor announced Jongin rushing back into the kitchen. “What happened?” he asked, looking from Taemin to Taeyong and back again.</p>
<p>“Someone is flirting with Taeyong!” Taemin yelled, outraged.</p>
<p>“I didn’t say that!”</p>
<p>“Then why would you ask me that?!”</p>
<p>“I was just curious, okay? There is no need to be like this!”</p>
<p>“It’s my duty as your older cousin to worry about you! Who has been flirting with you? Is it a woman? A man?” He squinted, suspicious. “Where did you <em>meet</em>?”</p>
<p>“Ah, Taemin, maybe you shouldn’t…” Jongin was very sweet in his attempt to stop the barrage of questions Taemin aimed Taeyong’s way, but as Taemin’s boyfriend, Taeyong thought, he should have learned by then that there was no way Taemin would let go of any matter once it had tickled his interest.</p>
<p>Defeated, Taeyong sighed and crossed his arms to stop himself from fidgeting. “It’s a guy,” he confessed. “We met at work.”</p>
<p>“What’s his name? Is it the guy you go out with sometimes?”</p>
<p>Taeyong shook his head. “It’s not Yukhei.” Palms up, he stopped Taemin from asking anything else. “And no, I won’t tell you his name.”</p>
<p>Grumbling, Taemin slouched further in his chair, his lips pressed together, clearly annoyed. He met Jongin’s gaze and the two seemed, once again, to have an entire conversation without speaking a word at the end of which Taemin sighed and nodded, before turning to Taeyong with a tentative smile. “I’ll listen,” he said.</p>
<p>Taeyong beamed, reassured. He really wanted to talk to someone about Baekhyun, and Taemin was the most logical choice. When he saw Jongin pat Taemin’s shoulder and moving to go back from where he had come from, he frowned and grabbed his wrist. “Stay,” Taeyong told him, and he meant it. In the time spent together, Taeyong had come to see Jongin not only as Taemin’s boyfriend but as a friend, as precious to him as one he had known his entire life.</p>
<p>Judging by Jongin’s pleased smile, maybe he thought the same thing about Taeyong.</p>
<p>Once they were all settled at the table, Taeyong felt the weight of their gazes and had trouble maintaining eye contact. He played with his fingers, trying to come up with the best way to start the conversation when Jongin’s voice pulled him out of his headspace.</p>
<p>“When did it start?”</p>
<p>“A couple of weeks ago, more or less.” Taeyong saw Taemin physically restrain himself from talking, probably wishing to know why Taeyong hadn’t talked about it sooner. “He came to the shop one day and said that we had already met, but I did not remember him.” He studied Taemin and Jongin’s expressions from under his lashes. “I still don’t,” he pouted. “He started coming by the shop every three days or so, always asking the same thing and teasing me when my answer was negative.” Taeyong could feel himself flushing thinking back to those moments, to Baekhyun’s attractive smile, to his confidence, but also to the unexpected shyness he had shown Taeyong and that he guarded jealously in his heart.</p>
<p>“So he <em>is</em> bothering you,” Taemin hissed, narrowing his eyes.</p>
<p>“He is not!” Taeyong snapped. “He just likes teasing me. And…” He stopped to take a big breath. “And I don’t mind it, not anymore.”</p>
<p>Meeting Taemin’s bewildered eyes, he continued, “I think I like him. But how do I know if he is just being friendly? It’s not like I have any experience with this kind of things…” Taeyong was mortified at having to admit such a thing to the others, but he was pretty sure Taemin was already aware of his total lack of understanding of love matters, seeing as he had never, not even once, hinted at any romantic interest towards someone. Admittedly, Taeyong had had a couple of crushes back at the village, but he had never been interested enough to pursue them and, as shy and awkward as he was, no one had ever been interested enough to pursue anything with <em>him</em>. That was why Baekhyun’s attempts confused him and left him terribly flustered. And, also, terribly scared. Did he wish for Baekhyun to be flirting with him or for his behavior to speak only of friendship?</p>
<p>“Has he said anything else?”</p>
<p>Butterflies taking flight in his stomach, Taeyong confessed, “He called me cute once…” and watched Jongin melt down in giggles, while Taemin seemed unsure whether to laugh or cry.</p>
<p>“Taeyong,” Taemin sighed. “He is definitely flirting.”</p>
<p>“…Oh.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Taeyong waited with trepidation for Baekhyun to show up at the bakery once again. He had thought about asking Mark for the lesson plan he and Baekhyun followed – because Baekhyun always turned up at the bakery right before or after his lessons with Mark – but had decided against it: he didn’t want Mark to ask him too many questions, not when everything was still so new and fragile between them.</p>
<p><em>Them</em>.</p>
<p>Was Taeyong getting too ahead of himself talking about a them that wasn’t there yet? </p>
<p>Resting against the shop’s counter, he continued to mope, engrossed in his thoughts. He wanted to see Baekhyun so badly, just to assure himself that what had happened the last time they had seen each other had not been a figment of his imagination.</p>
<p>He was about to start rearranging the pastries in their display cases, just to have something to do during that slow hour, when he heard a kid yelling, “Mom! Mom, it’s the witch!” right in front of the bakery.</p>
<p>Taeyong didn’t think twice before rushing outside, but, alas, he was too late and could only spot the tail end of the witch’s broom flying above, too far for him to catch any detail. Pouting, he thought that his luck had truly abandoned him if, despite catching sight of the witch twice, he had never been able to really look at them. As soon as he had thought that, he frowned, feeling guilty. He was thinking of the witch as an exotic bird he wanted to observe closely rather than as a person. Scolding himself for that, he went back inside feeling quite dejected.</p>
<p>That was how Yukhei found him sometime later: sweeping the floor, miserable.</p>
<p>“Hey, Taeyong!” he addressed him warmly. “What’s up, man?”</p>
<p>Taeyong let out an embarrassingly deep sigh. He leaned his chin on top of the broom handle and looked at Yukhei with his big, dark eyes and moaned pitifully, “I didn’t catch the witch.”</p>
<p>“The witch?” Yukhei looked particularly puzzled at Taeyong’s words, which Taeyong considered quite unfair. Yukhei had lived in the city his whole life, he probably had had a lot of chances to see the witch doing… well, witchy things!</p>
<p>“Yeah, the witch. They were flying above the bakery earlier but I didn’t make it in time to see them clearly.”</p>
<p>Yukhei’s face lit up in understanding. “Oh! Of course, you want to see him flying!”</p>
<p>Taeyong perked up at his friend’s words. Just before he could comment something like <em>The witch is a guy, then! </em>a client came in and he had to attend to them, waving goodbye to Yukhei from behind the counter.</p>
<p>He would ask him about the witch the next day.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>With Halloween getting closer and closer, Taeyong’s excitement over the festivity only grew bigger. When Mrs. Lee presented him with a box full of decorations to hang around the bakery, he didn’t lose time and bounced all over the shop like some kind of Halloween fairy, spreading fake cobwebs and paper bats in his wake.</p>
<p>The best part was, of course, related to the amazing amount of themed cakes and cookies that the bakery popped out daily. Mrs. Lee had left him with some creative leeway and Taeyong had not needed to be told twice: the displays soon filled up with cakes shaped like haunted houses, complete with ghosts and black cats; frosted cookies looking like skeletons or spiders; an enormous ouija board cake that had been expressly commissioned for a teenager’s Halloween party; chocolate pumpkin muffins topped by gravestones, and more. There were baked goods for every taste, Taeyong made sure of it.</p>
<p>While so busy with work, he had been forced to stop thinking so much about Baekhyun, and luckily so. Much to his dismay, in fact, Mark – after Taeyong had taken, finally, the courage to ask him about it – had informed him that his piano lessons had been put on hold for a few days, because <em>“Baekhyun is very busy this time of the year, as you may understand.”</em> Taeyong had not understood but had preferred not to pry, not wanting to come off as too noisy.</p>
<p>On the Saturday before Halloween, Jongin surprised him with a request during breakfast: he had taken on the habit of buying his niece and nephew a few toys and decorations for Halloween because they liked the spookiness so much. With Taemin being busy on that day, Jongin had decided to ask Taeyong to go with him to help him buy what he needed.</p>
<p>Needless to say, Taeyong had been <em>elated</em> by the request, but nothing could have prepared him for Jongin’s next words and the sheer excitement that sprouted from them: “I wonder what the witch prepared for us this year.”</p>
<p>Taeyong, who had been drinking what remained of his tea, almost sprayed it all over the table when some went down the wrong pipe at Jongin’s words.</p>
<p>Coughing and accepting a napkin from Jongin who was eyeing him with no small amount of concern, Taeyong spluttered, “The witch? What do you mean the witch?”</p>
<p>An eyebrow raised in confusion, Jongin told him that the witch owned the only toy shop in town and that was where they were headed that afternoon.</p>
<p>Taeyong felt faint.</p>
<p>He was so excited at the thought of finally meeting the witch that it had to show on his face because Jongin asked him if he was feeling okay. Taeyong giggled and squeaked a tiny “Yes!” before hurrying up the stairs and to his room to change, eager to start the day.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The happiness he felt accompanied him during his entire shift. When Mrs. Lee noticed the smile he had constantly stuck on his face, she patted him on the cheek and told him, quite fondly, that he was lovely when he smiled and that he should do it more often. Taeyong stammered a thank you and went back to mix the batter for a new cake, singing a tune under his breath.</p>
<p>When Mark stumbled down the stairs and into the kitchen, hair still mussed from sleep and eyes not entirely focused, he was surprised to see Taeyong so vibrant and told him so. Yukhei nodded in agreement at his words while he was taking out of the oven the last loaves of bread for the day.</p>
<p>Unable to keep quiet about the matter any longer, Taeyong confessed, quite excitedly, that he would be visiting the witch’s shop later that afternoon and that he couldn’t wait to see what kind of magical stuff he had in his shop.</p>
<p>After his little speech, Taeyong had expected his friends to be glad for him, but, instead, his words were met by silence. Raising his head from the worktable, he saw the two of them regard him with furrowed brows.</p>
<p>Feeling self-conscious because he realized that, maybe, his enthusiasm was indeed a bit childish, he was about to ask them what was wrong, but before he could do that Yukhei opened his mouth and said, “With witch you mean Bae—<em>ouch</em>!”</p>
<p>Quite inexplicably, Mark had decided that stomping his foot on Yukhei’s would be an amazing idea and he did just so in front of Taeyong’s bewildered eyes. “Excuse us a second,” Mark told him before grabbing Yukhei by his shirt and dragging him out of the door that connected the kitchen to his house.</p>
<p>Befuddled, Taeyong shrugged and was ready to go back to his work. Mark had always been a little quirky, so his behavior that morning didn’t appear that out of character. From his worktable, he could hear loud whispering coming out of the door left ajar and he would have ignored it if it wasn’t for him hearing what sounded suspiciously like his name.</p>
<p>Quietly, he left what he was doing and walked to the door, making sure that the other two could not see nor hear him. Placing his ear against the wood, he heard some muffled words and then Yukhei exclaim, “Oh! So he doesn’t know that he--”. The rest of the sentence got lost under the rustle of Yukhei’s clothes.</p>
<p>Squinting his eyes, Taeyong got even closer just in time to hear Mark’s words: “He made me promise not to tell him, so keep quiet.”</p>
<p>Who made him promise? What was Mark talking about? Taeyong wanted so badly to face them, but in doing so he would reveal that he had been eavesdropping and he wasn’t sure that would be a good idea.</p>
<p>Returning to his worktable, he kept thinking about what he had heard all morning, throwing shifty glances in Yukhei’s direction that had to make him quite uncomfortable, judging by how restless he appeared once he was back from talking to Mark. Alas, Taeyong’s attempt to push him to confess subconsciously was for naught. Yukhei’s shift ended without Taeyong knowing anything more than he had earlier in the morning and Mark, that little gremlin, had not come back down to the shop.</p>
<p>Hence that afternoon, when Jongin came to the bakery to get Taeyong, he found him quite less cheery than he had left him that morning. When he asked Taeyong what was wrong, Taeyong just shook his head with a smile and told him that everything was fine.</p>
<p>The two of them started walking towards the witch’s shop, which, Taeyong found out, was not that far from the bakery, just a few side streets away. The closer they got to their destination, the more Taeyong could feel his giddiness return and he was soon skipping along with Jongin’s larger strides, asking him questions about what he wanted to buy for his sister’s kids.</p>
<p>“I was thinking about some cute decorations for their rooms, a couple of dolls, maybe some spooky animals?” Jongin wondered out-loud, Taeyong nodding delighted beside him. “But I want to see what the witch has to offer. He always has something unique for each festivity of the year, but I think he gives his best for Halloween.”</p>
<p>Taeyong decided then and there that the witch was his favorite person in the <em>whole</em> world.</p>
<p>At last, they stopped in front of a building, its façade painted a bright red, a sign upon the glass door reading The Witch’s Lair. Taeyong felt so jittery he was sure he must be vibrating in place.</p>
<p>“Let’s go in,” Jongin said, and Taeyong eagerly followed on his trail.</p>
<p>As soon as he stepped foot inside the shop, Taeyong was hit by the sheer quantity of toys stuffed upon shelves and inside open cupboards, on the floor, and hanging from the ceiling. They were all colorful and mostly made from wood, lovingly carved and painted by an expert hand. There were dolls inside their houses; dogs, cats, and lizards; rocking horses so beautifully made they seemed real; stuffed toys, teddy bears in little blouses, rows of puppets; and then trains and cars and carillons, building blocks and tambourines.</p>
<p>It was a children’s heaven. It was more than Taeyong could ever have imagined, for not only were the toys perfectly made, they also <em>moved</em>.</p>
<p>He took in with astonished eyes dolls taking tea together, little airplanes whirring around above their heads, a frog jump right in front of him and then on a shelf, toy soldiers in their colorful coats march along the floor, snakes winding their bodies around the feet of a table and slither up, so quickly they seemed to have come to life.</p>
<p>And then, as Jongin had said, there was an entire section dedicated to Halloween with bats and dancing skeletons, mummies who kept checking their bandages, zombies jumping out of their graves and back in again. Everything was so incredibly amazing, so magical, so wonderful that all Taeyong could do was gawk at every new thing his eyes fell on.</p>
<p>So enraptured he was gazing at two small dolls dancing together to a music only they could hear that he missed the arrival of the shop’s owner. It was only when he heard a familiar voice say, “Welcome to The Witch’s Lair!” that he finally raised his head and, shocked, gasped, “You?!”</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>What do you think of Baekhyun? :) <br/>Let me know in the comments!<br/>Stay safe ♡</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/awjonginnie">twitter</a> | <a href="https://curiouscat.qa/awjonginnie">curiouscat</a><br/></p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Welcome to The Witch’s Lair!”</p>
<p>Hearing that voice that had quickly become so familiar and so dear was, to Taeyong, utterly unexpected. Stunned, he raised his head and couldn’t help but let out a loud “You?!” once he spotted the man who was standing behind the counter.</p>
<p>Baekhyun smiled sheepishly, a red flush spreading down his neck. “Hi, Taeyong,” he greeted him, meekly waving his hand. Receiving no response, he cleared his throat and said, cheekily, “I heard you were looking forward to meeting me?”</p>
<p>The gall of that man! Taeyong was so flustered and confused that he didn’t know what to say and Baekhyun still dared to flirt with him!</p>
<p>Then, a thought zapped through Taeyong’s mind: all those times he had talked about the witch with Mark and Yukhei, the weird behavior the two of them had shown a few days prior, the words <em>“He made me promise not to tell him”</em>, everything led Taeyong to believe that his friends had known what was going on and chosen to play along with Baekhyun’s prank, all at Taeyong’s expenses.  </p>
<p>Heart in his throat, Taeyong shook his head and left the shop, Baekhyun softly calling his name not enough to make him stay.</p>
<p>He took off down the road, thinking only of putting as much distance as he could between himself and Baekhyun; the sidewalk seemed to blurry under his feet just as his eyes began to burn. Scoffing at himself, he let out a bitter laugh and forced himself not to cry in the middle of the street. He would go back home, take a nice, warm bath, and then cry to his heart’s content.</p>
<p>Had Taeyong stopped to think for a moment, he would have probably realized he was coming to all the wrong conclusions. He had a habit of doing that, his judgment swayed by years of low self-esteem, a general mistrust of people, and the tender feelings he was harboring for someone he barely knew. Alas, had he stopped for just a few seconds, he would have seen the crestfallen look in Baekhyun’s eyes and the guilt that crossed his face. But Taeyong had not waited and missed all of that.</p>
<p>Lost in his dark thoughts, he also missed the sound of hurried steps approaching quickly from behind him until a hand grabbed him by the wrist, forcing him to stop, and a warm voice veiled by regret said, “I’m sorry.”</p>
<p>Taeyong stood frozen, heart beating wildly in his chest. Baekhyun’s hand gently guided him to turn around, but Taeyong couldn’t find in himself the strength to look the other man in the eyes, too strong was his discomfort.</p>
<p>The touch of Baekhyun’s fingers on the soft skin of his wrist was searing.</p>
<p>His stomach twisting in anxiety, Taeyong raised his head and let out a little gasp, taken aback by the intensity he saw in Baekhyun’s dark eyes. “I’m sorry,” Baekhyun said again.</p>
<p>Taeyong had never seen him so serious.</p>
<p>Baekhyun had been flirty, cheeky, even shy. He had never been so serious, but he had always been careful with Taeyong’s feelings, Taeyong realized. Honest since the start.</p>
<p>That thought was enough to disentangle Taeyong from the net of anxiety he had fallen into; his stomach stopped hurting, the confusion that had enveloped his mind melted away. It felt like stepping outside of a glass box; Taeyong reconnected with the world and his surroundings, the colors became brighter, the sounds louder.</p>
<p>The patch of skin Baekhyun’s fingers were touching didn’t burn anymore; rather, it glowed in a gentle, soothing warmth that soon spread all over Taeyong’s body. Without thinking, he gently freed his hand from Baekhyun’s grasp just to properly entangle their fingers, their hands warm despite the cold weather.</p>
<p>“I’m sorry,” Baekhyun repeated for the third time. <em>Once for the ears, twice for the mind, and thrice for the heart,</em> Taeyong thought.</p>
<p>“Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked Baekhyun, trembling slightly. Baekhyun must have felt that, for he tightened his hold on Taeyong’s hand, just a tiny bit, but enough for Taeyong to feel grounded by the little gesture.</p>
<p>“I was foolish. I had this grand idea in mind, to surprise you with magic on our…” he trailed off, shaking his head. “I realize now that you could be hurt by the things I didn’t say.”</p>
<p>“For a moment I thought you were laughing at me behind my back,” Taeyong confessed. “But,” he added, “that was stupid of me. You have done nothing in the past to make me think that. I’m sorry.”</p>
<p>“Oh, you sweet thing, no. Don’t be sorry, your heart is the most precious thing and you were just protecting it.” He smiled, small and boyish. “I approve of that.”</p>
<p>Baekhyun’s smile truly was lovely, Taeyong thought.</p>
<p>“Do you wanna come back inside?” Baekhyun asked him. “We can talk if you feel like it. Or I can just show you around.” Baekhyun looked at him expectantly, as if Taeyong, with his answer, held the key to his happiness.</p>
<p>Taeyong nodded, shy, and laughed at Baekhyun’s whoop of joy.</p>
<p>“We’ll have so much fun, you’ll see!” the other told Taeyong, walking back towards the shop. “There is so much I want to show you! I saw how cutely you were looking at my moving toys, you know?” The winks were back and bright, bubbly Baekhyun with them.</p>
<p>When they got back to the shop, they found Jongin sitting on a small chair, surrounded by plushies that had clearly taken a liking to him. He had a pair of brown bears on his lap and he looked so enamored with them that Taeyong was sure Taemin would find them occupying his side of the bed that night.</p>
<p>“You found company!” Baekhyun said, delighted.</p>
<p>“They are adorable,” Jongin whined. “I would take them all home if I could…” he pouted.</p>
<p>Taeyong couldn’t help but giggle a bit, and that sound attracted Jongin’s attention. “Everything alright?” he asked Taeyong, who nodded. With evident relief crossing his face, Jongin stood up very gently, not to bother too much all the cute, fuzzy animals he had been playing with, and came to the counter, eager to buy what he had come for.</p>
<p>Taeyong stood to the side while Baekhyun showed Jongin all the toys he had created for the Halloween season. Once his purchases were finally made, Jongin left the shop with two bags full of presents – for his nephew and niece, but also himself. He hadn’t had the heart to leave behind the cute bears he had made friends with, just as Taeyong had predicted.</p>
<p>Alone at last, Taeyong and Baekhyun gazed at each other from over the counter, before Baekhyun stepped around it and came closer to Taeyong. “Where do you wanna start?” he asked him, leaving Taeyong floundering for a reply.</p>
<p>Eyes softening in understanding, Baekhyun gently pushed him towards one shelf to his left, close to the shop’s window. “Why don’t we start from here?” he proposed. At Taeyong’s nod, Baekhyun reached for what – Taeyong had to admit – had instantly grabbed his attention: a beautiful miniature carousel with shining details painted in gold and white and brown horses with colorful ornaments in their manes that had started pawing at the ground at the first touch of Baekhyun’s hands on the object, eager to start their ride.</p>
<p>Smiling at Taeyong’s fascination, Baekhyun turned a key on the side of the carousel and sweet, bright music echoed in the room while the horses started turning at the sound of its notes.</p>
<p>“It’s a music box,” Taeyong gasped, utterly enchanted by what he saw. The wooden horses trotting around the pole of the carousel felt so real he had trouble believing they were not. As he was thinking that, one of the horses took off in a brief gallop, bothering all the other horses coming before and after it.</p>
<p>“Ah,” Baekhyun tutted, lightly tapping the rebel horse on the saddle, “always making trouble this one.” With a shaking of its long mane, the horse calmed down and started trotting in sync with its companions once again.</p>
<p>When the music came to an end and Baekhyun put the music box back on its shelf, the horses went still once again, as if they were sleeping. Taking a closer look, Taeyong found that they had indeed closed their eyes, their flanks moving gently up and down as mimicking breathing.</p>
<p>“This is brilliant,” Taeyong said. “<em>You</em> are brilliant,” he told Baekhyun, enjoying the light, pleased blush that colored the older man’s cheeks.</p>
<p>“Come,” Baekhyun told him, “I’ll show you some more.”</p>
<p>And so it went, Baekhyun taking Taeyong around his shop, showing him the creations he was most proud of and basking in Taeyong’s admiration.</p>
<p>Taeyong truly could not have imagined that such magic existed anywhere in the world. But it did, right in the heart of the city he had learned to call his, and by the hands of a man Taeyong would love to call his, too. The thought both scared and elated him, a boy who hadn’t even given his first kiss, yet.</p>
<p>When the streetlights lit up outside and cast new shadows inside the shop, Taeyong realized that it was time to go. He told so to Baekhyun, enjoying the exaggerated pout on his pretty lips and the whining in his voice playfully begging him to stay a little while longer.</p>
<p>“Remember earlier, when I said that I wanted my magic to be a surprise?” Baekhyun asked him, stopping on the threshold. “I had planned to surprise you with it on our first date.”</p>
<p>“Who—who said anything about a date?” Taeyong screeched, embarrassed.</p>
<p>“I am asking you now, aren’t I?” Baekhyun said, cheekily. “Ah, colibrì, don’t pout! I’ll take you to the amusement park on Halloween, what do you say? You and I, escaping from a haunted house…” He sidled closer, eyes intent on Taeyong. “You can hold my hand if you get scared,” he purred.</p>
<p>Taeyong squeaked something unidentifiable before scuttling out the door, cheeks aflame. Baekhyun followed him, giggling. “Taeyong! Yes or no? Don’t make me die here, sweetheart!”</p>
<p>“Yes!” Taeyong yelled, barely turning around to look back at Baekhyun, whose smile was so large his eyes had turned into half-moons. With a noise resembling that of a dying whale, Taeyong hurried away, too embarrassed to face Baekhyun again.</p>
<p>“I’ll send you a formal invitation!” Baekhyun shouted after him, laughing merrily. “Good night, colibrì! Dream of me!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The rest of the weekend passed by in a blur for Taeyong. He spent some time with Taemin and Jongin after having to endure Taemin’s questioning over what had happened with Baekhyun at his shop, Jongin looking at him with apologetic eyes, quietly begging Taeyong’s forgiveness for having spilled everything to his boyfriend.</p>
<p>On Monday, he spent the entire day thinking about Baekhyun.</p>
<p>He got up late, prepared himself a hearty breakfast, and planned to sit on the windowsill in his room and read some of the books Taemin had got for him, something he had wanted to do for a while but that he hadn’t had the time to yet.</p>
<p>A book in particular grabbed his attention, the title reading <em>Howl’s Moving Castle</em>. Intrigued, Taeyong grabbed it - together with the soft blanket on his bed - and curled up on the windowsill, ready to lose himself for a few hours inside a new book. The more he read, though, the more his thoughts drifted to Baekhyun until he had to read the same paragraphs several times to understand what was written.</p>
<p>Snorting and laughing to himself – for, of course, out of all the books on his shelves he had to grab the one about wizards, magic, and a protagonist he felt too close to his heart – he closed the book and turned his gaze out the window, his eyes following the flight of a few robins above the rooftops.</p>
<p>There was something incredibly calming in hearing the chatter on the street below and the creaking of the old house around him. He felt so cozy wrapped inside the colorful blanket that he thought he could gladly spend his entire day just like that. He wondered if Baekhyun liked to stay at home as much as Taeyong did, or if he was someone who loved being among people. There were so many things Taeyong didn’t know about the witch, but it made everything more exciting.</p>
<p>He let out a breathy little sound thinking about what had happened on Saturday: the discovery, the shop, and the magic. Baekhyun’s smile, most of all, and the promise of a date. As he was thinking about that day, something came back to Taeyong’s mind that he had forgotten in the daze.</p>
<p>
  <em>Colibrì.</em>
</p>
<p>That was how Baekhyun had called him.</p>
<p>“What is a colibrì?” he wondered out loud. A frown appeared between his brows and a questioning noise made its way beyond his lips. The laziness of that morning fought against the curiosity of knowing the meaning of that word. Biting his lips, he stretched his legs towards the floor and put on his fluffy slippers, deciding to leave the blanket around his shoulders as a sort of a makeshift cape.</p>
<p>He shuffled downstairs, the smell of his cooking still strong in the kitchen as he passed by it heading to the living room and Jongin’s book collection. The emerald green sofa had been left in disarray the night before after he, Jongin, and Taemin had squeezed themselves on it to watch a movie on TV. The throw pillows had been left half on the carpeted ground and half on the headrest of the sofa, while the coffee table still held remnants of the frankly worrying amount of popcorn they had consumed.</p>
<p>Promising to himself that he would clean everything up in a bit, Taeyong ignored the mess and stopped in front of the big bookcases that framed the television stand. Quickly scanning the titles, he hummed triumphantly once his eyes fell on what he was looking for: a dictionary of the English language, its spine so worn out Taeyong was afraid it would fall apart as soon as he took it off the shelf.</p>
<p>Leafing through its pages, he found that the word he was looking for was missing, the dictionary jumping right to <em>colic</em> after <em>coleslaw</em> and <em>coleus</em>. Pouting, he put the book back on its shelf, debating whether the matter was worthy of a run to the nearest library or if it could wait for the next time he and Baekhyun would meet. Glancing out the window, he saw the branches of the trees that lined the street swaying with force under the wind’s assault and shivered in response. The wind had risen and it was so cold outside…</p>
<p>Self-preservation winning against curiosity, Taeyong proceeded on tidying up the living room and then went back upstairs to his book about wizards and moving castles, daydreaming about his own handsome wielder of magic sweeping him off his feet.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Taeyong! There is someone here for you!”</p>
<p>The day before Halloween had revealed itself to be busier than any other day so far, leading Taeyong to be afraid of what awaited them around the Christmas Holidays. A lot of people had come into the bakery asking for frosted cookies, chocolates, and candies, things they could easily hand out to little ghosts and monsters rapping on their doors.</p>
<p>It was fun work, if terribly tiring. Mrs. Lee had been teaching him how to frost to perfection and, while his attempts were still pretty far from being as perfect as hers, he wasn’t doing too bad. He thought he had got the hang of it quickly enough and was in the middle of decorating little severed limbs when he heard Mrs. Lee’s voice calling him from the shop.</p>
<p>Apron spotted in red because of all the food coloring he had been using and hair kept away from his face by a pink hairpin, Taeyong wondered who was looking for him considering that all the people he knew were inside the shop, at school, or work. But maybe…</p>
<p>Rushing to remove the hairpin from his hair and patting it down in the foolish attempt at giving it some sort of styling – but only managing to transfer frosting from his hands to his brown strands – Taeyong opened the door a tiny bit and peeked into the shop, frowning when he didn’t see anyone he knew. Pouting, for he had hoped for one moment to see a familiar head of dark red hair and a cute face framed by round glasses, he walked into the shop and stepped closer to Mrs. Lee, who was busy packaging an enormous cake for a lady so tiny that she could barely see over the counter and the pastry stands.</p>
<p>“Mrs. Lee?”</p>
<p>“Oh, here you are,” she muttered, tongue poking between her lips, focused on getting the ribbons on the box just <em>right</em>. “They’re waiting for you outside,” she told him, shooing him away.</p>
<p>Puzzled, Taeyong stepped around the counter and towards the front door, growing increasingly anxious at the amused looks some of the clients in line were throwing him. Feeling himself getting smaller and smaller, he tentatively opened the front door, the merry chiming of the little bell above jarring against the sudden bout of anxiety he could feel taking over his body.</p>
<p>There was no one at the door.</p>
<p>Frowning, he turned his head towards Mrs. Lee, a question on his lips, when a tiny noise that sounded like someone clearing their throat diverted his attention back towards the road: there, barely reaching Taeyong’s knees, stood a small parade of toys led by a nutcracker who held in his hands a creamy envelope addressed to <em>My colibrì</em> and sealed with red wax.</p>
<p>With a bow, the toy handed the envelope out to Taeyong, who, befuddled, accepted it. He jumped, startled by the tiny cheer that a doll dressed like a ballerina let out, followed by a round of applause and general ruckus from those toys that had no hands. Cheeks aflame, Taeyong watched the nutcracker try and calm down his companions before putting himself at the head of the tiny parade and lead his friends back to where they had come from.</p>
<p>By then, a little crowd of passersby had formed around the entrance to the bakery, delighted by the little show that Baekhyun’s toys had put up. Taeyong watched a little kid who couldn’t be more than two years old toddling after the joyful procession, enchanted by the funny gait of a duck with wheels. The little duck seemed to play with the kid as well, speeding up and then down according to the toddler’s own pace, his mother looking on fondly and following her kid just a few steps behind.</p>
<p>When the rest of the toys had walked around the corner and disappeared from view, Taeyong saw, to his surprise, the little duck stop and let itself be nabbed by the child, its wheels whirring merrily in his grip.</p>
<p>“Well, aren’t you going to open it, boy?” a voice spoke up. It was the tiny lady who had been inside the shop just a moment before, a pretty box held safely at her side.</p>
<p>“Uh?”</p>
<p>“The letter!” she replied, huffy. “Ah, that witch, so charming,” she sighed. “Had I been a couple of decades younger, I would have—"</p>
<p>“Gladys, leave the poor boy alone,” Mrs. Lee laughed, appearing behind Taeyong. “Didn’t you say you were awaited at Marlene’s house?” She turned to Taeyong with a fond smile. “Take five minutes, alright?” Her eyes crinkled prettily at the corners. “See what your boy wrote you.”</p>
<p>Taeyong nodded, his cheeks alight, and scurried back inside the shop, closing himself in the bathroom. Resting against the closed door, he took a deep breath and then screamed – quietly – barely stopping himself from jumping up and down from joy.</p>
<p>He ran his finger under the wax seal and extracted the letter with such care one would not suspect how fast his heart was beating in his chest. The paper he held in his hands was of a nice ivory color, the borders framed in gold. The following words were penned in exquisite penmanship with an ink so dark it contrasted nicely with the off-white backdrop:</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <em>My dear,</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I would give everything I own to be there beside you while you are reading this. Are you blushing right now? I love nothing more than your rose-colored cheeks and I have wished so many times to place my lips against their softness just to see if they are as warm as they look.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I promised you I would send you a formal invitation to our Halloween date, didn’t I? I hope the wait wasn’t too hard to bear. I wanted everything to be perfect for you, my dearest, and I had to instruct my toys to bring you this letter without straying – you won’t believe how stubborn they can be. But I shouldn’t get too mad at them, for they are but an extension of myself. I’m sure you’ll agree with me in showing them some leniency. Did you like the little parade? I truly hope you did.</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I have been babbling a lot, haven’t I? Forgive me, this is the first time I write a letter to someone I care for in such a way. My hands are trembling, but thankfully no one is here to see it apart from a couple of puppets I have been sewing. </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Let’s do things right, shall we?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Taeyong, will you do me the immense pleasure of going out with me on All Hallows Eve?</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>I will be waiting for you under the big tree in front of the Amusement Park near the sea, the lights of the Ferris wheel will guide you there. </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Let’s meet at four. We’ll enjoy the rides and eat until our tummies are too full to eat anymore. </em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Dress warmly – or not, if you are looking for an excuse to cling to me all evening!</em>
</p>
<p>
  
</p>
<p>
  <em>Yours,</em>
</p>
<p>
  <em>Baekhyun</em>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Taeyong pedaled back home feeling on cloud nine, so distracted thinking about Baekhyun and their date he risked losing his balance more times than he would like to admit.</p>
<p>Once he had parked his bicycle, he skipped up the steps and through the front door, almost tripping over an umbrella that had carelessly been left laying there. Hearing sounds coming from the kitchen, he hurried to change his shoes for his cute slippers and dashed into the room, surprising Taemin while he was doing the dishes.</p>
<p>“Minmin!” Taeyong greeted him, before falling against his back and squeezing him tightly against his chest, leaving poor Taemin unable to react apart from letting out an <em>eep!</em> a few octaves higher than his normal tone of voice and raising his gloved hands in alarm.</p>
<p>“Guess what?” Taeyong asked him, still glued to Taemin’s back like a limpet.</p>
<p>“What?”</p>
<p>“I have a date for Halloween!”</p>
<p>Wiggling free from Taeyong’s hold, Taemin brought his – still gloved and wet – hands to cup Taeyong’s face, causing an expression of disgust to appear on his face. “Tell me everything,” he ordered, then dragged him to sit down at the kitchen table, plopping himself down on the nearest chair.</p>
<p>Frowning, Taeyong grabbed the dishcloth Taemin had hung over his shoulder to mop his face from the sudsy water his cousin had left there. Taking a deep breath, he broke out in a shy smile that was met by an excited thrill from Taemin, who didn’t seem to be able to sit still when faced by his little cousin’s cuteness.</p>
<p>“So, what happened?” Taemin asked, quivery. After his initial doubts, Taemin had been quite supportive of Taeyong’s blooming relationship with Baekhyun, much to Taeyong’s gratefulness. Wading for the first time into the deep waters of romance was scary, but having Taemin to count on had made Taeyong a little more secure in pursuing a romantic relationship he would have never hoped of having.</p>
<p>While he was telling Taemin all about the loveliness of that day, Jongin came back home. Taeyong saw him almost tripping on the same umbrella Taeyong had fought with, but Jongin recovered with much more grace just to leave the umbrella laying right where it was, as Taeyong himself had done.</p>
<p>With a quick <em>Hello</em> and a wave of his hand, Jongin climbed up the stairs with heavy steps, clearly exhausted. Taeyong and Taemin had just resumed their conversation when Jongin came back down in a hurry, thumping down the stairs and barely acknowledging their presence in the kitchen before putting his shoes back on for a <em>Quick run at the grocery store!</em> – Taeyong suspected he had probably forgotten to buy whatever Taemin had asked for and was trying to fix that before being confronted by Taemin’s disappointed pout.</p>
<p>Watching Jongin disappear out the front door, Taemin scowled and hurried to the window, throwing it open.</p>
<p>“Hey!” he yelled, propping himself up on the windowsill, his dark hair ruffled by the wind. “Kim Jongin, you walk away like that?!”</p>
<p>He had to wait but a few seconds for a giggling Jongin to trot back and appear beside the window, accepting the loud smooch Taemin planted on his upturned lips. With a satisfied nod, Taemin let him go and closed the window behind him, coming back to the table with a saunter in his steps.</p>
<p>“You two are gross,” Taeyong joked. He had lost count of how many times he had assisted to scenes just like that one in the weeks he had been living with the couple.</p>
<p>“Don’t worry, before you know it you will be just as gross with your lover boy,” Taemin winked, while Taeyong grimaced.</p>
<p>“Please, don’t call him lover boy.”</p>
<p>“But I can call him <em>yours</em>?” At Taeyong’s deepening scowl, Taemin cackled with joy.</p>
<p>“Let’s go upstairs, I will help you choose an outfit for tomorrow.”</p>
<p>“But what about the dishes?” Taeyong asked, eyeing the sink.</p>
<p>“Leave them, I’ll have Jongin do them when he gets back, he did forget to buy what I had asked him to, after all, and we have much more important things to take care of.”</p>
<p>“What did he forget?” Taeyong asked, following Taemin up the stairs.</p>
<p>“You don’t want to know.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’ve never seen outfits more depressing than yours.”</p>
<p>Taemin was rummaging between Taeyong’s clothes, all the drawers of his dresser thrown open and in disorder, much to Taeyong’s chagrin. Wincing when he saw Taemin ball up another one of his – perfectly good – shirts, Taeyong decided to intervene before Taemin deemed all his wardrobe completely useless and launched it out the window.</p>
<p>“What’s wrong with my clothes?” he asked, trying to distract Taemin from his fashion-fueled rage. “They’re perfectly good,” he muttered, taking one of the rejected shirts and placing it on his bed. He sighed thinking of how much ironing was in his near future.</p>
<p>“They’re boring! And out of fashion! And what is this?!” He was showing Taeyong one of his favorite sweaters: it was white and fluffy and had a cute little frog wearing overalls stitched on it.</p>
<p>“That’s cute!”</p>
<p>Taemin frowned, looking at the sweater once again. “Okay, it’s cute, but it’s not what you need to wear on a date.”</p>
<p>Taeyong huffed, put-out. “What should I wear, then, oh wise one?”</p>
<p>“Nothing of what’s in here for sure. We need to go shopping.”</p>
<p>“I can’t go shopping, the date is tomorrow and I’m going there right after work.”</p>
<p>Taeyong saw Taemin opening his eyes wide, a horrified groan coming out of his mouth. “You can’t go on a date looking like a schoolboy!” He grabbed him by the wrist and dragged him to the second floor, throwing the door to his and Jongin’s bedroom wide open. “Sit there,” he ordered, pushing him towards the bed. “I’m gonna find you something to wear, we’re basically the same size.”</p>
<p>“I really don’t see the need to—”</p>
<p>“Shut up, let me focus! If I left it to you, you’d turn up dressed like someone out of one of your books.”</p>
<p>Pouting, Taeyong watched with mistrust Taemin pull out outfit after outfit from his well-organized wardrobe, muttering to himself all the while. Once satisfied, Taemin gestured to the clothes he had put on the unoccupied side of the bed, inviting Taeyong to try them on in the master bathroom.</p>
<p>With a sigh, Taeyong did as he was told.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>To Taeyong, the ticking of the clock had never seemed so slow.</p>
<p>It wasn’t hard to keep himself busy working in a bakery on Halloween day, so he had thought that time would pass just as quickly as any other day. Time had had, apparently, other plans.</p>
<p>Huffing and puffing over the dough he was kneading, Taeyong couldn’t help but throw furtive glances at the clock, wishing for it to go faster and his workday to be over.</p>
<p>As focused as he was between his dough and the clock that he was starting to believe to be broken – there was no way time was moving <em>that</em> slow – Taeyong missed the amused glances Mrs. Lee and Yukhei exchanged over his head and Mark coming back home, the poor boy quite confused about Taeyong’s unusual lack of enthusiasm at seeing him before his mother whispered something in his ear and his face lit up in understanding.</p>
<p>Despite his wishes, when, at last, the small hand of the clock inched to three, Taeyong couldn’t help but feel a bit queasy. Trying very hard not to let the knot in his stomach prevent him from having a good time, he barreled to the bathroom to spruce up and make himself more presentable.</p>
<p>That morning he had brought with him at work a bag filled with a few toiletries and the clothes Taemin had chosen for him the day before. Unbeknown to Taemin, though, Taeyong had sneaked inside some of his own clothes, still unconvinced of Taemin’s choice of clothing for him: a lot of black, dark denim, and studs. Taking them out of the bag, Taeyong grimaced at how little those clothes spoke of him. Truth to be told, they didn’t speak of him <em>at all</em>.</p>
<p>Biting his lips, Taeyong asked for Taemin’s forgiveness and decided to put on the clothes he had chosen for himself, reasoning that Baekhyun liked him for who he was, out-of-fashion clothes and all.</p>
<p>Smiling to himself at that thought, he smoothed down the cozy sweater he had worn – a cute piece he had found in a little store near the fruit seller and that he had immediately liked, light blue and with little white seahorses all over it – put on his best jeans and his usual sneakers, and deemed himself ready.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>If the wait inside the bakery for the clock to finally signal the end of his workday had seemed to last forever, the time it took him to go from the shop to the Amusement Park felt way too short.</p>
<p>There were a lot of people around, mostly kids in Halloween costumes with little baskets full of chocolate and candies, but Taeyong also met couples heading to the beach or – he suspected – to the Amusement Park, which seemed like a popular date spot.</p>
<p>As Baekhyun had written in his letter, it was impossible for Taeyong to miss the park, its location made evident by the imponent Ferris wheel turning slowly in the sky, its colorful lights contrasting beautifully with the sky nearing sunset.</p>
<p>As Taeyong got closer to the entrance of the park, the music coming from inside could be heard louder and louder, as the screams of children and adults alike and the chatter of the crowd. The sweet scent in the air spoke of popcorn, candied apples, and cotton candy.</p>
<p>When the gates of the entrance were finally in Taeyong’s line of sight, he turned his head slightly to the left and there stood the tree Baekhyun had spoken about, a huge sycamore casting its shadow over the people waiting in line at the ticket booth.</p>
<p>Under its yellowing branches was Baekhyun, his smile like a beacon. His sight made Taeyong’s enamored heart beat faster and his steps quicker, for he couldn’t wait to feel the light of that smile on his skin and the warmth of those eyes in his bewitched soul.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Hello, my dears, I hope that January has been kind to you ♥<br/>I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I had so much fun writing about Baekhyun's toys and his constant flirting :)</p>
<p>Until the next chapter, stay safe ♥</p>
<p><a href="https://twitter.com/awjonginnie">twitter</a> | <a href="https://curiouscat.qa/awjonginnie">curiouscat</a></p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
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